Life is Stranger
by Simmy731
Summary: The aftermath of the storm has left Max and her best friend Chloe in a very emotional state and together they must attempt to rebuild their lives as well as deal with the consequences of Max's decision to save Chloe! (There will be a happy ending ;) ) and this also hella PRICEFIELD!
1. Chapter ONE: Ending of the beginning!

**Hey everyone! This is my first ever fan fiction and I really hope it is at least semi decent :) Hope you enjoy the first chapter!**

 **Chapter One:** ** _The storm!_**

There it was! ' _the storm!'._ A huge conglomeration of terror, hatred, fear and destruction. It was an unstoppable force that swept away anything and everything it it's path. Some would call it a sort of 'damnation'. Most people did not have time to think of what it was, they were too busy running for their lives, hugging loved ones or praying for the safety of themselves and those around them. The storm didn't care that people were running or hiding or preying, it had one mission and no matter what it was going to see it through; kill and kill again! And what was the cause of such a disaster?

Maxine Caulfield stood frozen in place. She could see it all! The streets and buildings of her home town, Arcadia Bay, were simple dots in the distance as they were sucked into the very heart of the viscous tornado that ploughed into the town with the force of a thousand natural disasters. Max could not distinguish between the rain and the tears on her face as she watched in horror. Words seemed pointless at this point, no matter what she said it would not change anything.

The deadly storm that had probably killed so many people already was her doing! Well that's what she thought anyway.

Next to Max, stood the blue haired punk girl that had accompanied the frightened hipster on her recent adventure into the unknown. Into the mysteries of time itself!

Chloe Price did not speak also at first. Instead she made every effort to stay strong for her friend, _how the hell could anyone stay strong looking at this!_ She thought to herself. Chloe wanted to reassure her friend, tell her that no matter what they will stay together and get through this. However, no words ever came out of her mouth for the entire duration of the conquest of the storm. It was only when the tornado itself began to fade when any such speech was made. "Max?" uttered Chloe. She waited for a response but nothing was heard so she slowly moved closer to Max. Chloe saw how much the young hipster was shacking and it wasn't only because of the cold. Max was genuinely in a trance of pure fear.

Suddenly Max went limp and fell to the ground with an almighty thud! Chloe rushed to her friends side with the urgency of a first responder and clutched her friend in her arms, "Max! Please don't do this not now, not t…to me. Just wake the fuck up right now! Max…MAX!" Yet again no response was heard. Only a few moments prior, Max was very much awake and had her face buried into Chloe's shoulder as the sight of the storm was way too much for her and now her head was stationed in Chloe's lap as she sat on the very wet and VERY cold ground.

Chloe tried one last time to shake her friend into consciousness and continued to frantically beg her to wake up, "Please Max, I need you! I really do right now. Wake up goddamn it!" but nothing. Max just led there as if in a deep sleep. Chloe hoped this would not last long. She just about manged to haul Max up and into her arms as she walked, almost limping, down the dirt slope where she hoped her beat-down truck still remained. It was then, with Max in her arms, that Chloe Price made a promise. A promise that she would never ever break no matter what!

"I promise you Maxi-pad! I will protect you. No matter what, even if it's ten **fucking** tornado's I will be here for you and I don't give a **FUCK** what gets in my way"


	2. Chapter TWO: Each other

**Thanks for all the support on Chapter One! It means the world to me honestly! Hope you enjoy the second chapter!**

 **Chapter TWO: Eachother**

Do you know the feeling you get when you wake up very suddenly in the middle of the night because you hear some sort of loud noise? You know…you feel scared for a mere second and then you sit bolt upright to investigate the source of the sudden involuntary awaken. Well that's what Max Caulfield felt when she woke up suddenly in the passenger seat of a familiar run down truck. She just sat there for a moment, blinking a million miles an hour. _What the hell happened? How did I even get here? Oh my god…the town! Oh shit what have I done?_ The questions immediately filled Max's head as tears began to collect themselves in her eyes. The tears seemed scared to travel the distance down Max's face as her head sunk in shame.

The tears were forced out when Max violently slung her head back up as the realisation came to her.

"CHLOE!" she bellowed. Max looked to her left at the empty driver's seat and she almost immediately began to think the worst, _where the hell is she? Has she run off and left me? No…no way would Chloe ever do that. Not to me. Not after the insane week we just had. I sacrificed so much just so she could live! Was that too much for her to handle?_ Max shook her head and brought herself back to the real world. She almost instinctively opened the door and was met with a surprise!

It was…the sun!

The sun was actually rising. Max never thought she would ever see this again, that somehow the tornado may have cut off all connection to that beautiful golden glow that she took for granted. She knew it was silly to think that and not to mention scientifically impossible. After staring at the sun for almost an eternity, Max stepped out of the truck only to be met with the still wet ground yet again as the jelly that had replaced her legs buckled under her weight. With a thud and a groan of pain, Max hit the ground. At this very moment of time, Max couldn't give two shits about the pain, right now she was concerned with Chloe, the blue haired punk rock girl who just happened to be her best friend and her first priority. They had not seen each other in five years until the icy hand of fate had bought them back together.

The last week they had experienced together was one of the toughest, saddest, most disturbing week Max had ever experienced in her life. She had discovered that she had some sort of power, an ability to rewind time when she stuck her right out although now she thought of it as a burden that had caused so much destruction. She also witnessed Chloe get shot by this rich asshole Nathan Prescott although Max had managed to save her by using her newly found time controlling ability. Max's friend Kate March had also tried to kill herself after some video got out of her at a party. Max had saved her too! However this time, she was able to do it without the use of her power. So much weird shit had happened to Max in the last week and it had all culminated with the impossible decision to allow either Chloe to be killed by Nathan and save Arcadia Bay from being wiped out by a tornado or sacrifice here home town so Chloe could live another day. In the end, Max chose to be selfish and allowed the tornado to engulf the town but Max was adamant that Chloe would be alive no matter what and she would not let anything change that! It was the certainty of one person dying versus the possibility of a hundred people dying. Impossible.

"Holy shit Max! Are you okay?" bellowed the familiar and beautiful voice of Chloe Price as she dashed over to her downed friend.

"Jesus Max, I step out for one second to take a piss and your already giving the ground a blowjob!" she chuckled as she helped her friend up. Chloe knew that now was not exactly the time for jokes but she wanted to at least try and lighten the mood. For Max's sake. Max struggled to get up on her feet and had to lean on the truck and Chloe for support.

"C…Chloe how long was I…I…out?" Max struggled to ask. Chloe could see the worry and fragility in the face of the young hipster as she opened the door to the truck to help her back into the seat.

"I don't know, a good few hours. It is morning now. I was just about to try to drive into town to see…" she stopped herself. Chloe knew what she wanted to say but she didn't know how the next word would affect Max. She had already been through so much and Chloe didn't want to hurt her any further. Fortunately Max was able to finish the sentence for her, her voice sounding rough and breakable as she said it.

"Survivors…" almost as soon as the word exited Max's mouth, the trapped tears released themselves and before Chloe had any time to even think about comforting her friend, Max was already in floods of tears, crying openly and loudly. The sound of her best friend crying almost set Chloe off too although she probably had no tears left after crying silently to herself an hour earlier. Chloe didn't want to show emotion like that. Not in front of Max or anyone, even her mom Joyce. Chloe was always the tough one, the punk, the hard egg that no one could crack and she had no intention of ever letting that go. It was pretty much all she had…well until Max came back. Chloe hadn't seen Max for around 5 years and she felt like she had lost something within herself, that coupled with the loss of her amazing father William, had turned Chloe into what she was now. It wasn't until Rachel Amber came along that Chloe actually felt some sort of connection with someone other than her own mother. A connection that was suddenly severed when Rachel went missing and later turned up dead in that junkyard.

Her junkyard.

Their junkyard.

"Hey come on super-Max, it's okay we…we can go see whenever you're ready…I mean shit we don't even have to see, we can just…go another way" Chloe found it so hard to say those words because she desperately wanted to go into the town, into the very heart of the storm to see if…where her mother is. Hell, she even wanted to see if David was okay. Chloe never got on with her step-father David Madsen. He was assertive, angry all the time, paranoid but most of all …he wasn't William. He wasn't her father. As if she read her mind, Max suddenly lifted her head up from her barrage of tears and spoke with a shaky but still soft voice.

"No I can't just run. I have to see what I've done, who I have…killed! Please, I have to…I have to…I have…" Max was stopped in her trance as Chloe grabbed her best friend into a hug and the two embraced each other for what seemed like hours.

Chloe wanted to say it wasn't Max's fault but all she could do was hug the crying girl. Chloe hated that Max blamed herself, she despised it! Max had done what she did in order to save Chloe. It was as if she owed a life debt to Max. _A life debt…shit I owe her a million fucking life debts._ Chloe had no idea how many times Max had saved her life but she would be fucked if she ever let her friend down. They were both so similar in so many ways and that includes; they both blamed themselves.

Chloe knew that they had to do. They had to go right into Arcadia Bay. She had to know if her mom and David were still alive. Max had to know if everyone she knew at Blackwell Academy were still alive. They both had to know what they had done…together!


	3. Chapter THREE: Those proven promises

**Hey everyone! Sorry this took a little longer but here it is :D Once again hope you all like it and the nest one may take a little longer as I have some very important work due in that I have yet to start. I'll shut up...and** **enjoy** **:)**

 **Chapter THREE: Those proven promises...!**

The journey into the very soul of Arcadia Bay felt to Max as if her and Chloe were entering an ancient long lost city that nature had reclaimed. Within seconds of starting up the truck, Chloe and Max saw real devastation before their very eyes and goddamn did it hurt them both!

Trees had been torn from their roots and flung across a huge distance into whatever part of civilization they could find. Whole buildings, big or small, had been ripped from the very ground and their shattered corpses paraded what was once known as the street. Max spotted a fire hydrant that spewed water from its broken body as if it were a volcano. Chloe glanced over from carefully driving through the wreckage and saw several overturned cars just lying there, some had been hurled upside down whilst others were just plain broken and in bits. None of the horrifying devastation scared both Chloe and Max more than the silence.

That loud silence.

Gone was the familiar symphony of cars driving through the Bay, gone was the sound of birds flying and tweeting through the skies and gone was the sound of the people walking and talking and enjoying life. This is what scared Max the most and she joined the silence as she quietly wept to herself. As soon as Chloe heard her best friend crying like that, she halted the truck and turned and spoke softly to Max.

"Jesus Max…this is heavy. I mean like…this is fucking real! The whole town is in fucking pieces. It's okay though, we don't yet what happened to everyone. For all we know, mom and David and everyone else we know could be all safe and sound. If they are then I promise, we will…"

Suddenly Chloe's speech was interrupted by the loud and ferocious sound of Max smashing her fist down on the already beaten dashboard and spoke with such anger and regret that it even scared Chloe a little.

"I know what I did Chloe! Look at everything, do you see any fucking people? No because there aren't any. No one's locked up safe and sound in their own personal bomb shelters Chloe! The only thing even similar to that is the fucking dark room! No one in Arcadia Bay saw the tornado coming except me so they would have been at work, at home or with their families and I took that away. I took everything away from the town that had given me so much. Kate, Warren, Daniel, Dana even fucking Victoria are all dead because of me! I don't deserve this power, all I have ever done is make shit worse and worse since I got it and now look. The town is dead and so is everyone else. I did this. Fucking me! Back in the dark room I called Jefferson a murderer and now what am I? Look around you Chloe, I am worse than…" Max was halted in her rant by Chloe practically leaping across the seat and grabbing max by her shoulders and demanding she look at her. When Max finally gazed into her best friend's eyes, she saw something within her, a pain that she had never felt. See, Max's family were all alive and cosy up in Seattle so were some of Max's old friends. Chloe on the other hand didn't know where her family was or any of her friends. Well she knew where one was, Rachel and she was lying dead in a junkyard not to far from here. For all Chloe knew, her whole family could be dead right now and after losing both her real father and her crush, Chloe couldn't take any more loss and Max saw all this just from the girl's eyes.

"Don't you even fucking DARE say you are worse than him Max EVER! Jefferson KILLED Rachel maybe not directly but he caused it. He straight up fucked my life up again for the third fucking time and almost broke the shit out of me trying to find her. Not only that but he kidnapped Kate Marsh and who only knows else for his sick games. You are nothing like him Max. You…saved me! Not only from the gun in the bathroom or back there but you bought me back from something I thought I was stuck in! You gave me hella hope when I thought it had packed it's bags and fucked of to some other punk ass. Yeah, the town is in ruins but you don't know if everyone is dead and you better not give up on me now Caulfield because I promise you on Rachel's grave that I'll slap the shit-piss out of your freckled face if you do. You were given these powers not by choice and you proved to me that you were able to use it like a hero. You proved it to me now prove it to those people out there who are still alive. Remember…you are super-Max"

Those words. Those incredible utterances proved three things to Max as she sat there in awe, staring up with tears in her eyes to her best friend. It proved that Chloe had fire in her that would give that tornado a run for its money and that she was determined to find her family! It proved that Max also wanted to find her friends like Kate Marsh and help Chloe so that in some way she could atone for all the shit she caused with her cursed powers and it also proved something that Max had known for some time now but only now had realised that it was there, it was sentient and she would be dammed if she was never going to say it out loud through the tears and sniffles….

"I…love you Chloe!"


	4. Chapter FOUR: The Survivors

**Chapter FOUR: The survivors**

The word 'survive' is subjective. You could make it through a large and horrific war and still come out of it injured to the point where life itself seems a losing battle, a never-ending reminder of what happened and what never was. On the other hand, you could also come back from such horrific events and use that horrible period of your life as a brand new starting point to something bigger and better! Once you have 'survived' enough of these events, you become a survivor…a warrior, someone who knows what it takes to make it through anything and everything life may decide to toss at you. That is how Chloe Price knew her mother and step-douche were still alive and kicking and she was determined as fuck to find…

 _Wait did…Max just say…nah she probably just meant it as a way of saying 'thank you Chloe for the hella badass speech you just gave…_ Chloe's thought suddenly interrupted her in her mental trance as if it was a fire alarm warning everyone of a large and ferocious fire heading their way. She turned to Max, who was now looking away with a mix of intense embarrassment and shock over what she had just said sprawled across her face.

Chloe didn't know what to say. Should she carry on lecturing Max about being a hero? Should she drive on and pretend nothing happened? Should she lean over and give the cute hipster a huge kiss… _holy shit really Chloe, you seriously just thought that about your best-fucking-friend. I need a cigarette!_ Chloe gently reached into her pocket and produced a pack of cigarettes and whippet one out. At this very moment she kind of wished it was a joint so she could 'medicate' and relax but she settled on the crumpled collection of tobacco and began to put it in her mouth before being interrupted by the sweet and oddly calm voice of her hipster friend.

"I'm sorry for just…saying that Chloe. Things have just been intense. Everything you just said was right, I can't let what happened to the town ruin who I am. We should head further into town, maybe to the Two-Whales, see if Joyce is okay!" Chloe was about to ask how Max knew that Joyce was at the Two Whales however made peace with herself that she didn't wanted to know and it probably would only make her worry more.

"You got it Maxi-pad. Two-Whales it is, I sure as shit hope my mom is okay Max and yeah…even David I guess" the sentiment about David made Max smile a little, for the first time in a while.

Max knew the relationship between Chloe and her step-father, or step douche as she called him, was rocky at the best of times and two often would get into fights or arguments no matter how little the cause but she always sensed that there was a deep understanding between the two of them, an un-spoken truce of mind that they both understood what they were going through. David came back from a war and was in some ways still there and found it hard to adjust to regular living and Chloe was still angry over William's death in a car crash years ago. In a weird way, the arguments and the shouting was there way of communicating with each other, as if they had their own unique language.

"Let's do it Chloe and I promise we will find them!" with this declaration, Max put her hand on Chloe's knee and the blue-haired girl looked up and smiled at her.

"Thanks Max, let's do this shit!" with that, Chloe once again started up the truck and carried onto into the unknown.

They didn't get very far when they were greeted with something neither one of them secretly expected. Good news!

 **ANY AND ALL SURVIVORS!**

 **PLEASE HEAD TORWARDS THE OUTSKITS OF THE TOWN!**

 **MEDICAL ATTNETION WILL BE PROVIDED!**

Both girls immediately began grinning with joy, shock and suspense as Chloe stomped hard on the accelerator, leaving the makeshift board in the dust. The girls presumed the sign set up by some safety group who had obviously set up camp on the outskirts of the town in order to bring in as many survivors as they could.

The atmosphere in the truck was immediately lightened due to this amazing discovery, with tears running down Max's face as she leant forward with intense anticipation. Chloe managed to hold back the tears for the time being, although she felt the exact same way Max did.

" **FUCK YEAH"** Chloe exclaimed, making Max jump.

"Calm down Chloe, we don't know what we're going to find. What if we are the only ones?" she asked, fearing the outcome if she was right.

"No way Max, they only set up those stupid fucking signs when they actually have people there already. David told me. It means it's not as bad as we thought otherwise they wouldn't waste time with a small sign and just launch like a thousand search and rescue choppers. What if it's mom Max or Kate or Justin or…I don't know…like your other billion friends at Blackwell!" Max chuckled due to both her massive over-exaggeration and at Chloe's happiness. She replied very simply.

"Yeah you bet Chloe" once again the two looked at each other and smiled. They looked into each others eyes and Chloe now wanted to say how much she thought Max was awesome and a totally amazeballs friend but instead uttered something else, something perhaps she had wanted to say for a hell of a long time now, buried deep in the back of her mind this past week behind thoughts of Rachel's safety and now that of her mother and even David.

"I love you too Max!"

 **Well there we are, chapter four is out! I really liked this one and I hugely apologise if it is kinda short. The next one will be a long one as we finally see who survived the tornado and who perhaps weren't so lucky.**

 **P.S The final scene of episode 5 shows Max and Chloe looking sadly at the wreck of the Two-Whales and departing Arcadia Bay. In this version, as I do want to make a little more happier, the same thing happens however instead of looking bleak, the look semi-confident and they head out in search of where the survivors might be**


	5. Chapter FIVE: Those who did

**Chapter FIVE: Those who did…**

What do you expect to see when you enter a makeshift survivor camp? For some people, they expect to see what they want to see, their family and friends all sitting round a table safe and sound. Max Caulfield however, can't help but expect the worst.

Ever since the beginning of the hellish storm, Max had held onto every single small ounce of hope that she could that those she cared about were okay and safe but she knew better than to expect them all to be alive. _Okay this is good…calm down Max, the camp is only a minute away. I know they are alive, I just know it._ Of course, the doubt attempted to creep its way into Max's mind but she kept it away and tried to remain positive as the truck slowly advanced on the camp.

Chloe had no idea what to think when she saw the orange flashing lights and the entrance to the camp. The lights and the red tape and the noise of generators made it all seem so hectic and busy. It generally made it seem like it was some zombie survivor community just after the apocalypse had started. Of course, that wasn't true…it was some other kind of apocalypse. The truck stopped suddenly and Chloe's face turned icy pale and she began to slightly shake at the sight of several body bags in the distance. The rescue team had obviously tried to put the bodies as far back as they could so survivors who were coming into the camp didn't freak out, unfortunately for the two stunned girls sitting and shacking in the beat down truck they were still visible and still being carefully transferred into a tent. Max saw the intense look of shock and horror and her best friends face so she put her left hand delicately on Chloe's leg and spoke very softly and calmly.

"Chloe…I'm sure it's no one we know. The best thing we can do is speak to that man on the gate and just…go in. We need to be sure." The words were hardly a comfort to the blue-haired girl at the wheel but it came from Max and especially with what the two had just admitted to each other, it served to sooth Chloe and she nodded at her friend and advanced once more.

The camp was allot bigger than either of them expected, especially seeing as how it had only been about a day since the tornado came through. Max had missed the helicopters and rescue vehicles in their frantic attempt to search for survivors. Chloe had said the noise was loud but it gave her some hope that her mom was safe. There must have been over fifty or so tents in the first section alone, most were medical obviously. Others held various radio equipment, food supplies, water and spare clothing etc. There were some workers carrying around large crates full of canned foods and other similar provisions. That just served to remind Max of the dark room and it's apocalypse-ready stock of food. Max put all thoughts of Jefferson and the dark room to the back of her mind and focussed on the young man wearing a bright fluorescent jacket that had just sprinted towards the car. Chloe rolled her window down but couldn't bring herself to speak to the man so Max shook away the tears that were once again trapped in her eyes and waited for the guy to speak first.

"Holy shit, you two come from the town?" Max nodded in response.

"Well let me start by saying I'm glad you both made it. As you can see things are pretty shitty here at the moment, we literally just got a bunch of new refugees here like twenty minutes ago. Are you either of you seriously hurt?"

Both Max and Chloe shook their heads. This is the first-time Max truly thought about how lucky both her and Chloe were to not actually get hurt by the storm and any debris that might have joined the tornado in its quest for destruction. Max was about to ask the guy where they needed to go when Chloe suddenly burst open the truck door, knocking the poor worker on his ass. What she had seen made her so happy, so surprised and so quick to run out of the car with such speed that Max didn't immediately know what happened, that was until she saw the woman wearing the blue waitress outfit with her hands clamped over her mouth in an equally shocked manor as he daughter rushing towards her.

"Oh my lord…Chloe!" exclaimed Joyce Price as she embraced her daughter who launched herself into her arms. As soon as Max saw Joyce, she herself had launched herself out of her side, quickly apologised to the man and helped him up and joined Chloe in hugging Joyce.

"Thank the lord you two are okay, I was sick with worry. I promised myself as soon as I helped some of the worse of folks around here and I would go out there looking myself" she assured the girls. Chloe looked up at her mother and saw that her eyes were red and puffy from tears. Chloe wanted to say how much she was sorry for treating her mother like shit for years but she too focussed on hugging and crying into her side to say anything. Max chose to speak first.

"It was so crazy out there Joyce but I'm so glad your okay". In some ways, Max wanted to tell Joyce that she had literally caused this entire storm just to save her daughter, not to be vain but to show how much she was willing to go through to keep Chloe safe.

Joyce thanked Max and took them into a warmish tent and sat the down so that she could speak to them a little better. Chloe finally managed to build up the courage to speak to Joyce.

"Mom..I…I'm so glad you're okay I was shitting myself with worry" Joyce reminded Chloe about her use of language.

"Sorry, I'm just so relieved to see you. Look I don't want to like bring the mood down or anything but I have to ask, is…David here?"

Max felt a twinge of guilt as she hadn't even thought of David when they entered the camp especially considering he saved her in an alternate timeline. Chloe had asked about David because as much as sometimes he hated the guy, she did hope he was okay.

Joyce initially looked down however with a tear in her eye she spoke.

"Honey…David is…he's alive but in a critical condition. Turns out he saved a Blackwell student that was trying to leave Arcadia Bay with her family. It was that girl from the news, Kate Marsh."

Max wanted to shout in joy at the mention of Kate however didn't say anything and allowed Joyce to carry on.

"Their car got stuck behind some wrecked rig on the road leadin' out of town and David managed to help the girls to safety but got hit with some piece of metal being swept up by the storm. I just hope to god he's okay! If I hadn't of kicked him out then he might be…" she couldn't finish and rested her head into her hands. Chloe got up and hugged her mother and they both silently wept. Wept for the man who had caused so much shit with Chloe's life. Wept for the paranoid douche of the house. Wept for Chloe's step-father who she really wanted to see him now.

Max decided to get up too and decided to give the two a little space. She too felt really bad for David but right now she needed to see Kate or anyone else from Blackwell who might be alive. As if she read her mind, Joyce glanced up from her hands and gave Max some of the best news since seeing Joyce alive,  
"Max honey, that girl David saved and some others from your school are a few tents away. Number '12' I think. I'd like to have a moment with Chloe if that's okay with you honey and please head to medical if you're hurt!" Joyce had always acted as a parent towards Max and for that she loved her!

"Thanks Joyce, I'll go see them right away and…I'm sorry about David. I'm sure he'll be fine, he's a fighter!" with that and a teary "good luck" from Chloe, she left the tent and made her way to the place where her friends were. The one's they found anyway.

She found the large green tent standing sentinel over her. She knew that not all the people she cared about were going to be in there. She braced herself for the worst but kept an open mind. _Okay Max, some of them might still be out there or at some other part of the camp._ She reassured herself and prepared herself to open the door to the place that could either bring her happiness or something much much worse. _Deep breaths Caulfield. Okay._

 _Three…_

 _two…_

 _one_

The doors to the tent opened and all at once, Max's world was both rocked and broken as she grasped her mouth with her hand. She saw exactly ten people she knew from Blackwell in that very room. Where were the others? Where the fuck were the others?!. Tears streamed down her face as she gazed upon the surprised but glad faces of;

 **Victoria Chase,  
Kate Marsh,  
Daniel DeCosta,  
Dana Ward,  
Alyssa Anderson,  
Brooke Scott,  
Juliet Ward,  
Hayden Jones,  
Justin Williams,  
Stella Hill.**

Several thoughts burned through Max's head all at once. _How did they all make it? Are any of them hurt?_ However, the most important questions stood out in Max's mind and they weren't going to leave her until she found out the answers and she was determined to do so, _where are the teachers like Mrs Grant? Where is Samuel or even Frank with his dog? What about Zachary or Courtney and Taylor or anyone?..."Where the fuck…is Warren?"_

 **Well here we go at chapter FIVE. I wanted to say thank you so much for all the support and also my apologies for my sometimes-weird writing style. I want to make thigs simple to read, not to insult any of you but just because it is much easier to read. The next chapter will deeper into the thoughts of Chloe and her mother as well as some more concrete information on David's condition and who made it and who didn't** **  
**


	6. Chapter SIX: Those who didn't

**Chapter SIX: Those who didn't…**

 **I'm really sorry this took a long while to upload but I was having a few major issues that have now been dealt with and thanks so much for all the amazing support and reviews and views of this fanfiction. Enjoy Chapter SIX!**

When asked what the happiest moment of your life was, what do you say? Do you talk about the day you were born or perhaps the day you met that one true special someone? For Max Caulfield, it was a few things. The day she first entered the world of photography when her parents, Vanessa and Ryan, bought her to this super-snobby art museum when she was young almost always came to her mind first whenever she thought about this. There were two other occurrences in her life that she truly believed shared the title of 'happiest moment' and she knew she could always think back to these moments in times of distress and sadness.

The time she met Chloe Price was defiantly one of these moments.

Max couldn't remember how old she was exactly when she met Chloe but ever since the two locked eyes for that first time, they became inseparable and hung out every day they could. Chloe's parents and Max's already knew eachother for some time before their kids met and the highlight of all their time spent together was always the early morning breakfasts from Joyce and the weeks they spent dressing up as pirates. It would of taken several storms to separate the two of them…or a surprise move to Seattle.

The other occurrence that even came close to being one of her happiest moments was right then and there in the present day within that one large FEMA tent. After all she had been through in the previous week, the faces of those she cared about from Blackwell staring directly at her made Max's heart simultaneously break and melt. The first thing she heard was the sweet and soft voice of Kate Marsh who almost instantly ran up to Max and gave her the biggest and softest hug that even a bear couldn't refuse.

"Max…I am so glad you're alright! I prayed through the whole night that you and everyone would be safe and I'm glad they were answered. We were all so worried about you" Max couldn't help but release a few tears hearing those words from Kate. She took a few moments to return the hug from Kate before she replied,

"Kate, it is so good to see you, to see all of you and believe me I was out of my mind with worry. Is everyone here okay?" It took a few moments of nodding and silent nods before Kate spoke up once again,

"Everyone here is doing fine…considering. We're all just a little shaken up, Victoria hasn't even said a word since she got here and I've been trying to help the workers out as much as I can. Max…I was saved by Mr Madsen, you know the Blackwell head of security. I thought he hated me but he…got hurt trying to save me and they don't know if he…" Kate trailed off and Max could see this was really eating up at her. Max put her hand on Kate's shoulder as an attempt at comfort but it didn't seem to do much so he spoke instead.

"It wasn't your fault Kate. The storm was so sudden no one expected it and I guess we both need to say a huge thanks to David" of course in Max's case, David has also saved her in another timeline from the clutches of the vile Mr Jefferson back in the dark room. It was then that Max remembered that Kate had also been a victim of the dark room but decided that the sweet girl had been through enough recently and would wait before telling her.

Max spent almost a whole hour talking to the various Blackwell survivors and heard their tales of how they managed to stay safe of the dangers of the storm. Kate had been saved by David Madsen of all people and Daniel and Brooke had been together in Brooke' dorm room when the storm hit. Max had always thought that maybe Brooke and Warren would end up together… _holy shit…Warren! How could I almost forget him. I have to ask someone they must know. They have to know!._ Max stood almost at the centre of the room and asked louder than she expected if anyone knew where Warren was.

There was a look of genuine sadness on the face of everyone in the room and no one dared speak a word. Alyssa was the first to speak up and walked slowly and delicately towards Max.

"Umm…look Max, there are still people out there who are missing from Blackwell and I'm sorry Max but no one here has seen Warren since the Vortex club party."

A wave of both relief and shock came over Max and had to step back a moment. The last time she saw Warren Graham was in the diner with Joyce and Frank and all the other survivors back in the alternate timeline. She figured she could ask Joyce but she didn't even know if Warren had made it there in this timeline. Before Max could tank Alyssa, she heard the loud and kind voice of Dana Ward calling her over. Dana was always the kind one who couldn't care less about the popularity of those she hung around with but Max had always thought that Dana could be where Victoria is right now with her looks and popularity but she was glad in any case that she wasn't. Max walked slowly over to Dana trying to avoid eye contact with anyone in the room with her as if looking at anyone just reminded her of what she did in possible brining the storm to Arcadia Bay.

Dana and Max took a seat on a bench near the rear right corner of the tent and Dana spoke quietly to Max.

"Hey Max, I'm glad you made it and I'm sure Warren is okay he is a tough kid" the words were hardly a comfort to Max but she smiled and thanked Dana nevertheless. Dana continued with her speech however much more hushed and low key than before.

"Anyway, I know Kate mentioned that Victoria hadn't said anything since she got here and I think I know why. Courtney and Taylor…they were at Blackwell like most of us when the storm hit and Victoria had a hangover. I heard her yelling at the two of them to get her some shit to help her head and…well they never came back and part of Blackwell got hit pretty bad when the storm came along, I think she might feel some guilt and to be honest I didn't think she had the ability to feel guilt after that shit she pulled with Juliet." Hearing this made Max feel bad once again, Courtney and Taylor could be mean at times but Max had gotten to know them pretty well the last week and bonded with the two.

"I'll go talk to her…thanks Dana"

On the way over to Victoria, Max overheard parts of a mumbled conversation between Hayden Jones and Daniel DeCosta. They were talking about how a storm of such size had managed to slip by the radars undetected and why they weren't warned, _trust me I'd like to fucking know as well_ Max thought to herself as she approached Victoria. Instantly Max noticed two things about the shivering blonde, one; she was clutching her phone like it was her lifeline and two; she looked soaking wet and her eyes were red from crying. Max thought back to how she was in Jefferson's dark room when she had realised what was about to happen. Seeing Victoria like this and her conversation with Max at the vortex club party had changed Max's opinion of the former 'queen bitch' and Max thought she had finally understood why she acted the way she did.

"Hey Victoria…are you okay" Max asked quiletly as if consoling a saddened child. Victoria didn't even glance up at Max before meakly uttering,

"Please…go away Max. I want to be alone right now. I don't mean to be a bitch…for once. I just need to be alone right now" Max could sense the regret and anger in Victoria's voice.

Max stood up and was about to say something to somehow comfort the grieving girl when she heard the doors to the tent open and a young man with a small stubby beard and light brown hair in a pale white doctors coat strolled in and solemnly asked "Excuse me…sorry to interrupt you all, I'm sure this is a rough time for each and every one of you but do any of you happen to know where a…Maxine Caulfield is?". Max wanted to cringe at the mention of her full name but instead decided to walk over to the man politely.

"Uh…yeah that's me" she replied. The man in white smiled and spoke with a voice that seemed to Max to suit some sort of counsellor or therapist.

"Ahh…good to meet you Miss Caulfield. My name's Luke and I was wondering if you could come with me please?"

Max looked directly into the eyes of the man confused.

"Why do you need me, is everything okay?"

The man called Luke simply nodded but Max wasn't convinced. She had seen that look before with her best friend Chloe when she had done something wrong and didn't want to admit to it. Max found a small degree of anger within her at that moment. She had just went through a horrible storm where people died that could have been her fault, she had been drugged and taken by a psychopath with a needle and a camera and watched her best friend die many times right in front of her eyes and now all she wanted was some news, good or bad to let her know what the fuck was even going on.

"I'm sorry…Luke but please if there is anything wrong or anything I should know then please just tell me. I need to know" there was a moment after she had said this that Max had thought she may have been overreacting and that the man, Luke, may have actually come in simply to ask her a few questions about her ordeal however the now dropped expression of Luke and the sudden silence of the entire room seemed to confirm the opposite. Luke spoke now much differently than before, he was now looking down and his voice became much deeper and coarse as he uttered something that would stick with Max for the rest of her life,

"Okay…I'm sorry to have to tell you this Max and the rest of you as well but we have just combed over the area surrounding the Two Whales Diner in mid-town Arcadia Bay and we found a young boy who has been brought here in critical condition and heavily injured. We believe that you were knew this person well Max. His name is… Warren Graham and once again let me say my sincerest apologies but we believe we may be have to… amputate his left leg!"


	7. Chapter SEVEN: Obstacles

**Chapter SEVEN: Obstacles**

 **This chapter will delve into the thoughts and feelings of Chloe and I know there was a cliffhanger at the end of the last chapter but all will be revealed in Chapter Eight!.**

No matter how hard things can get, no matter how tough, terrible or destructive times can be…there is always someone. Someone who can say ' _fuck it_ ' to the world as it is and make the worst in life seem like a distant memory. For Chloe Price, she knew only four people in her life that could make her smile enough to forget her many problems…and two of them were dead!

Of course, one of those people had to be her mother, Joyce, who was now sitting next to and embracing her in that loving warm embrace that Chloe hadn't felt in a long time. Years maybe. The second person was her punk twin Rachel Amber. Ever since the two had met all that time ago, Chloe had totally crushed on Rachel. Whenever they were together, Chloe felt like they could take on the whole fucking world and tear it in half. And smoke all the weed they could along the way. The two of them could foresee and overcome any obstacle that came in their way. The two of them could make the world bow.

Not now.

Not ever again.

It isn't a surprise that Chloe felt like her father William could make her happy even if the world was ending. Even after the accident which took her dad away from her, the mere memory of William would send a huge grin across Chloe's face. It was usually followed by tears or a joint.

The last person, the person who she felt closer to than ever before, that recently came into her life after an impossible situation was Maxine Caulfield. Maxi-pad. Super-Max.

Ever since Rachel went missing and probably even before, Chloe knew something was missing in her life. Now she knew what it was. Well one of them. She always thought that she had more pieces of her life missing than a pre-school jigsaw puzzle. Max made things so much better for her, just looking at her beautiful sexy freckled hipster face made her forget all the shit parts of her life and goddamn there was allot of shit in her life.

"Chloe…Chloe honey, are you okay" Chloe was bought back from her trance of thought by the soothing voice of Joyce Price. She immediately looked up only to be met with the concerned face of her mother.

"Huh…yeah shit sorry. I was just thinking of things. Been a pretty shity week you know, with the storm and…Rachel. I just wish thing could go right for me, it's such bullshit" the last part of her sentence she made sure was louder than the rest to emphasise how pissed off she was. Chloe could tell her mother was resisting the urge to both cry and tell her off for cursing. Chloe had sent the past half-hour explaining what had happened to Rachel, how she and Max had found her dead and buried in the junkyard. Joyce had tears in her eyes but for Chloe she had kept those tears from touching her cheeks.

"I can't imagine sweetheart, I wish there was some way I could make thing better but right now we have to focus on getting everything together. Once…David is better we'll head back to the house and see if there is anything we can salvage". Chloe didn't know if she meant salvage their home or their lives.

"Mom…that Luke guy told us about David and his condition, we don't know anything yet". Whilst it was true Chloe and her step-father David never got on and on more than one occasion it got kind of violent, Chloe always felt mostly anger with the ex-soldier because of how he was trying to take Williams place. She didn't know if it was the horrible experience she just went through or what was going on with David right now but she couldn't help but feel some sort of sympathy for the man she branded as step-douche.

"Chloe darling, we need to have faith that he'll make it. I know you don't like him and you may not be upset over this but he's my husband and I do love him. I know he could come off as…hard to handle sometimes but he loved you like a daughter Chloe, I promise you that!". Chloe felt a twinge of guilt through her mother's speech.

Chloe put a hand on her mother's shoulder and said something that she never thought she'd ever say in her life. "You know I never…hated him. Well I did but not as much as you guys thought I did. Sure he was an ass most of time he saw me and I did rip the shit into him more than a hundred times but I don't really hate him. In some ways he's like me! Been through shit and reacts in anger, maybe it's that or because he's not dad that I fuck with him so much. I don't hate, I really fucking don't and now I'm like…real scared that I won't get to tell him that…." She couldn't finish and almost completely broke down into her mother's arms. It was all true, she didn't hate David. He was a massive douche that was for sure but although Chloe would never admit it to anyone not even Joyce but Chloe was really worried about him.

"Never tell him that!" Chloe laughed through the tornado of tears. The two Price's embraced eachother for what felt like hours and they both decided to go and see David as soon as they could. Chloe thought earlier about obstacles and how she and Rachel would foresee and overcome any obstacle, well now she felt like, with her mother and Max by her side, she would not only overcome them but smash right through the fucking obstacles. This as the start of something good. The rest of her life. The blizzard of shit that surrounded her life was finally beginning to lift.


	8. Chapter EIGHT: Visitation

**Chapter EIGHT: Visitation**

 **Hey everyone, so sorry for this being SOO late, my computer was busted until today and the first thing I did when getting it back is upload this chapter. I promise I will go back to a regular upload, every Wednesday evening a chapter will be uploaded. Also, we are close to almost 1000 views on this fic and boy am I thankful to you all for this so much! :D :D You all are amazeballs! Thanks so much!**

Warren Dancel Graham. Lifelong friend and lifelong nerd. Max hadn't known him for that long when she thought about it, however in the time she has known him, he has because become someone Max could rely on and talk to about whatever she wanted. She knew he had a 'thing' for her and allot of the time she wished she could have the same feelings but she always thought of him as a friend. One of her best friends in fact. She remembered the stupidly cheesy movies they would watch and it was no wonder Dana thought the two were dating as they did spend allot of time together. Those stupid vampire movies never failed to make Max laugh. Good times. Now, Max found herself running in a frantic state in the FEMA camp, dodging workers and civilians alike, trying to find where her friend was.

" _We may have to…amputate his left leg_!" …the words seemed to be sentient in Max's overworked brain. They were trying to claw their way in to her feelings, make doubt and sadness and shock stand before any other emotion and it seemed right now that they were winning. The man called Luke rushed behind her as did the rest of her Blackwell classmates. _Holy shit…oh God come on don't fucking do this. Most of the people I care about are here and safe don't let Warren be different…not now,_ Max's thoughts exploded into her mind as Luke finally managed to catch up with her and directed her to the location of her injured friend.

The main medical tent was HUGE! Almost as big as an actual building although it was obviously rushed in its construction as it had only been nearly a day since the storm came through. Max rushed into the tent, nearly knocking over a poor old guy carrying medical supplies. The interior was insane and Max instantly saw how well equipped these people were. There had to have been at least fifty beds in there, maybe more and next to each bed there lay various medical hardware such as heart monitors and drip stands. The medical marvel would have been quite incredible to see however the spectacle was ruined by the fact that almost every bed was full. Max halted in her tracks whilst everyone else ran past her to find Warren.

This…this was her!

Her doing.

Her fault.

All these people here, in pain and maybe dying and here she was. The caster of the storm. The author of their suffering. She now stood with her hand clasped over her mouth, tears forming waterfalls down her cheeks. Max knew that she had no idea how the tornado had formed, she didn't even know if it was truly her complete fault but in this place right now who else could she blame? Her knees became weak and she almost fell to the ground. Once again, she gazed upon the gallery of suffering in this very tent, all the strained cries and shouting was now the only thing she could hear and everything else was a blur. She couldn't even hear the sound of Chloe Price, who was now holding her and embracing her as if knowing exactly what she felt there and then.

After what seemed like an eternity of looking at the horrible sight of all the people in the tent, she snapped out of her trance and the first thing Max saw was the warm and meaningful stare of the blue-haired angel who had somehow managed to move Max over to a nearby unoccupied bench and sat here down.

"C…Chloe. Look at all this! Is this what I did, to all these people?" she asked franticly. The punk got up from her seat and knelt down in front of Max, she then proceeded to lift her chin so that she now sat eye-to-eye with her best friend.

"Listen to me Caulfield, neither of us know what caused that shitty fucking tornado and right now I don't see how it could have been you. If anything I…blame myself for this. If it wasn't for my stupid ass pushing things with Nathan, you wouldn't have had to rewind in the fucking first place. Right now we both have to forget the whole blaming shit, we can think about that later. I need to be there for my mom and you for that kid Warren. Justin told me. Now can you do me a solid and don't blame yourself, at least not for now? Please Max…please" the speech nearly verbally broke Chloe and she got up and took her place back on the bench. Max looked at Chloe and she could see the look of intense worry on the punk's face. Max decided then and there that she was right! Now was not the time for blame.

"Thank you Chloe…" she said in-between sobs "I won't…not right now. I need to go and see Warren in a second but…why are you here?...Oh shit, is it David?" she quizzed, although she already knew the answer. Chloe simply nodded and then stated very quietly,

"Yeah, he's here. Never thought I'd every be in this situation, you know…caring so much. Always hated the guy but right now I guess I feel guilty. It's bullshit right?" Chloe asked with a small hint of laughter at the end.

"No it isn't Chloe, yeah he may be an asshole sometimes but in the other reality he did save my life and he did save Kate in this one as well as get justice for Rachel". Max observed a shiver from the punk at the mention of Rachel.

Chloe and Max sat together for a few more minutes before Chloe lightly slapped her own knees and got up with a huff and announced,

"Well I better go and see mom and David. I hope Warren is okay, I'm sure he will be though. See you in a bit okay!" with a nod as a reply from Max, Chloe departed over to where Joyce was sitting by a bed. Max couldn't see David due to the commotion but she did spot Kate Marsh walking towards the Price's. Probably to see how her 'saviour' was doing and se probably felt guilty. Max knew it was time to go and see her friend so she got up and walked toward the congregation of the Blackwell student over by a bed at the rear end of the tent.

Warren Graham was lying there, bandaged and damaged but he looked oddly peaceful. His hair was messed up and crazy looking and he was bruised near the top of his head as well as small patches of red that were visible through the bandage. Max had to sop herself from breaking down then and there when she looked at Warren initially. Whilst it was true she didn't like Warren in a love kind of way, she always thought of him like a nerdy brother and it majorly hurt to see him like this. Max glanced at his legs and saw that his left was heavily bandaged and even without seeing the injury itself, Max could tell it was super painful and super fucked up.

Brooke was holding Warren's head and was whispering into his ear whilst everyone else gathered around him. Max stood at the front of the crowd and looked down at her friend. Everyone remained quite for nearly twenty whole minutes and only the occasional sobbing and sniffing from Brooke, Max and those who really knew and liked Warren broke the silence. It must have been nearly half an hour since they first got there before Luke finally walked up to the crown and directed their attention to him. Max noticed, now that his sleeves were rolled up, a tattoo of a Bear playing a Harp on his right arm. A simple of violence and piece perhaps. Go figure. Luke spoke with his signature soft and soothing voice,

"Okay…once again I am sorry to those who know him best but the doctors have given the go ahead for the operation. Now as you can see it extremely busy here so I must ask you to give us some space while we take him out of here to another tent so we can operate in peace" the crown nodded in unison and everyone stepped out of the way whilst a stretcher was bought in to take Warren away. Before they were able to, Max, who was now crying massively, whispered to Warren in words that she would hope would do something, anything to help the boy,

"You'll be okay Warren I know it, you'll get through this and after we can visit any drive in you want. My treat. Be okay…just be okay" that was she could get in before he was wheeled away. As Max watched the stretcher leave the tent solemnly, she happened to notice Chloe and her mom. There was something up. An older man was holding Joyce in his arms and Chloe seemed to have her hands over her face.

Something was wrong!


	9. Chapter NINE: What came next

**Chapter NINE: What came next…**

 **Over 1,000 views on this fanfic! That is beyond incredible and I have to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone! It is so amazing and I am glad I can bring some joy to the people who read this. Oh and I promise there will be more Pricefield soon!**

David Madsen. There was a name that often sent Chloe's nerves into overdrive! She had spent more time hating the guy than she did actually thinking about important things. Chloe and David were always at eachothers throats and never stopped arguing.

This was different!

Chloe was so used to seeing the man storming around like some brute and fucking things up for her at every turn and…just being a pain in the ass. What she wasn't used to, was the way David was lying down in the bed in front of her, broken and injured. As soon as Chloe laid eyes on her step-father, she felt something. _What the fuck…is this shock? Or sadness. I know I told Max I felt guilt but shit! Look at the fucker! I didn't want this…not for him, not like this!._ With the never-ending train of thought thundering its way through Chloe's mind, she gave another long look at the man she had despised for a long time.

Whilst his entire body was encased in some sort of crappy hospital quilt, they could all tell that he must been in some sort of full-body cast. As for his exposed head, well that's a different story! Huge red blotches were visible below and above his eyes and he had a huge head wound that was visible behind a bandage that travelled the length of the entire top of the ex-soldier's head. There was even a gigantic cut or graze on the right side of his lip. It was clear that whatever happened to him, must have been something big and very painful.

Joyce had decided to station herself right by David and had her hand directly on his shoulder as if to comfort the injured man. Chloe decided to sit by her mom and was actually silent for a long time. She didn't know what to say, whether to make some joke to lighten the mood or make some sort of makeshift apology to her step-father. Fortunately for her, she didn't have to say anything as the silence was broken by a light and kind voice who had just approached them silently.

"Uh…hey guys. Sorry I don't mean to intrude but I just wanted to see how Mr. Madsen was doing" Kate Marsh stood and looked at Chloe and her mother, seemingly avoiding looking at David himself. Joyce was the first to slowly look up at the Christian teen and attempted a fake smile when replying.

"Hey hon. Thanks for coming. They don't know yet but we are all hopeful." Both Chloe and Kate seemed to notice the sad and almost monotone way Joyce had spoken. What worried Chloe more was the fact that her mom was almost always the one who talked allot and that was the most comforting thing about her, her soothing and peaceful voice that could calm a grizzly bear in the wild.

"I'm…very glad to hear that. I also wanted to say….uh…." suddenly Kate broke down completely, with tears flying down her cheeks like a waterfall. Her knees became weak as it was clear this was probably the first time the young girl had seen the state of the man who had saved her life. Chloe had only actually spoke to Kate a few times and she hardly remembered anything about her but somehow she felt a connection with her, maybe because they were both concerned and worried about the same man who had caused the both of them some degree of grief in recent memory. In any case, the punk decided it would be a good idea to leave her seat and embrace Kate. This sudden move stunned both Kate and Joyce as it was unexpected and sudden. Kate found herself returning the hug to the girl she barely knew. Chloe now spoke with a hushed tone and attempted to speak with a degree of compassion.

"Hey Marshmallow, there is no need to cry like this. You have no reason to. I am the first to say how much I hated that man for a long damn time and you know what…I do actually regret some of it. Not all of it but…some of it. I get it, you blame yourself for what happen to him but don't! He saved your ass and that means something. It means that he knows he's been shitty to you and this may make up for it. That proves he is NOT as big of an asshole as I thought he was so now, we gotta wait for him to wake his ass up so I can do the same. We have to say strong Kate, we just have to… understand?" the punk was now in tears too and so was Joyce who now joined the two in their group of grief.

After their hugging session was done, Kate pulled up a chair and three made conversation for what must have been around half an hour. Chloe seemed to grow to like Kate, more than she thought she ever would. Christians and punks don't often get on too well. The two had talked about their life at Blackwell however Chloe wanted to avoid the subject of Mark Jefferson. Chloe knew of Kate's horrible connection with Jefferson and didn't want to put the girl through any more shit. Kate and Chloe even managed to talk about Max and how happy she made the both of them. Max had of course saved Kate's life on the roof in Blackwell during her attempted suicide and this meant Kate held Max as one of her best friends. Chloe felt strangely jealous at this remark. It was painfully obvious that Chloe thought of Max in a different way. She loved the young hipster and had even told her so not too long ago. _Whatever as soon as this situation with David's over, I am going to tell that skinny ass how I feel. Then maybe we can start getting past this…_

"Mrs Madsen, you're David's wife right?" Chloe's thought bubble was interrupted by the deep voice of a man dressed in a long white coat. He was noticeably bold and had the face of someone who had just eaten a handful of sour candies. Joyce stood up and slowly walked over to the man whilst Chloe and Kate watched in silence, somehow knowing the seriousness of the conversation that was about to happen.

"Yes I am, how is my husband? Is her going to be okay? Please…just tell me what's going on I need to know" tears were now welling up Chloe's mothers face.

The man, Joyce, Kate and Chloe all locked eyes. They all knew what was coming, the bad news. They tried to mentally prepare themselves but nothing could prepare them for what came next…

"I do have some news for you all…David right here is, now this isn't a certainty in the slightest however…we think he's going to be okay."

That was it.

All it took.

Joyce's saddened and painful expression regenerated into a hopeful and happy grin whilst Kate's face lit up with the colour of many red roses. Even Chloe, who struggled to fully comprehend her true feeling for her step father smiled. It wasn't even a smile it was a happy smile, a relieved smile.

"Oh my…lord. Thank you. Thank you SO much!" Joyce hugged the old man, probably a little too hard. Chloe preceded to take a huge deep breath and held her head in her hands probably because she didn't want her mom, or Kate for that matter, to see her crying. This was actually something good. Things were going to get better now, she was sure of it!

 **I know! A happy ending aha, I really like David and I see that he became more of an anti-hero towards the end of the game so I wanted to show Chloe's morphing opinions of her step-father. Once again thank you so much for all the support for this fiction and it will carry on thanks to you all!**


	10. Chapter TEN: The Wait

**Chapter TEN: The wait…**

 **So awesome that we have got to the tenth chapter! Thanks so much everyone and now we will sort of start getting into more Pricefield and other stuff ;)**

Max loved Chloe!

She knew it!

Did Chloe know it too?

A thousand thoughts invaded the mind of Max Caulfield as she sat down in a small plastic, and incredibly uncomfortable, chair by the space where her friend, Warren Graham, once led injured but defiantly not alone. Max decided it was a good idea to at least try and block the worrying thoughts about Warren and attempt to focus on something…anything that could bring a spec of happiness into her soul whilst she and the rest of the Blackwell survivors waited for news about Warren. Max hated calling her friends 'survivors' as it only served as a constant reminder of what they all went through, as if the tornado had branded them all for life. Max knew she could not let that happen to her or anyone she knew _. It's time I stop feeling sorry for myself and actually start helping all these people that I may have…that the tornado hurt! I can't do this alone though…Chloe…_

Max turned to see if she can spot the blue haired punk as she did only a few minutes ago when she noticed Joyce crying into some doctor's arms and assumed the worst. However this assumption was soon blown to pieces as the wide smile on the older woman's face had told Max all she needed to know, that David may actually be okay. That had brought some colour back into her cheeks at least. She did manage to see Chloe talking to Kate and she seemed to be happy about it all too. Max knew there was some deep part of Chloe that wanted David to be okay however she would rather scream the alphabet of cuss words at the man before actually admitting it. This bought a slight smile to her face at the thought of the amusing situation. Suddenly, Chloe looked up and her and Max locked eyes for the first time since their talk on the bench. Even from this distance, Max could see Chloe's beautiful blue eyes that honestly you could get lost in. Max often did. Max then saw Chloe look down slightly and then said something quick to Kate and her mother and then began to get up and walk over to Max's location. _Okay here she comes…come on Max you need this, you need to be strong for Warren and Chloe. Maybe I should tell her or maybe I should…_

"Hey….uh…Caulfield" the rather demanding tone of Victoria Chase' voice snapped her out of her mind quiz. She turned her head to see the blonde standing and almost shacking next to her. Max noticed that the girls' previously puffy red eyes were now even more dark and pronounced, almost as if she had cried for hours.

"Hey Victoria, are you…okay? You seem disturbed" Max quizzed, her voice still croaky from worrying about Warren. Victoria looked at the floor for a moment before replying even more quietly than before,

"Look I wanted to say…thanks for earlier. I have to admit I didn't expect you to be so kind to me, especially after the way I've acted. I'm sorry about your friend, I'm sure he's fine. Hey do you think we could maybe talk later?, it's cool if it's a no. Wouldn't blame you." Max smiled at the request and stood up and pulled Victoria into a hug. Even without looking she could tell two things; Victoria probably had her mouth wide upon in shock and that the surrounding Blackwell students were probably just as surprised.

"Of course Victoria, I'll catch you later after I've heard about Warren" she once again smiled before re-taking her seat. Victoria awkwardly shifted in her response.

"Uh…yeah that's cool. Thanks Maxine." With that, she departed out of the tent itself, _probably to contemplate what the hell just went on,_ Max theorised in her head. She looked up to see Chloe who was nudging her head slightly, indicating to Max to come on over to her. Max sighed slightly and made the journey over to her friend.

The two ended up sitting on the exact same bench as before. Max filled Chloe in on all that happened with Warren and her encounter with Victoria. That latter had gained a few surprised remarks from the punk, of course. Chloe also relayed the news about David to Max that she had just heard from the doctor.

"That's great Chloe, I'm glad he's going to be okay and…I think you are too" Chloe playfully and lightly nudged Max in the arm and slightly smirked,

"One of these days Maxi-pad, I'm gunna actually hit you for those stupid remarks. But yeah, I guess I am glad. Shock horror I know. I'm sure Warren's going to be cool too though, he seems like a fighter kinda guy, not quite fight club looking but yeah, he'll be fine" the two giggled and Max was so glad she could actually smile with her friend as times may actually be getting better, well she certainly hoped so anyway,

"I hope so Chloe. I really do." Seeing that the topic may be getting hard for the hipster to talk about, Chloe put her arm round Max's shoulder and in response, the hipster happily sunk into the punks arms. It was then that she decided to move things along and say what she wanted to say ever since she first saw Chloe back in that bathroom.

"What I said…back in the truck after the tornado, I meant it. I do love you Chloe and not in a friend kinda way you know? All this shit with the tornado and now Warren, I just wanted to say just in case things go to shit again and I'm too upset to say anything else"

Chloe looked down at Max with initial shock and surprise. She knew Max said it in the truck, but this was different. Chloe then glanced over at her mom and Kate who were now smiling too and talking like family members. This gave her the confidence to say what she had wanted to say since they were kinds,

"You know what Max? So do I. I do, since like…forever. Rachel I totally crushed on but there always felt there was something missing and that something was probably your skinny ass, so why don't we cement this then, before things got to shit right here and right now!" Max knew exactly what she meant and leant up to face the blue-haired angel. With the sun light shining through the open entrance to the tent, they kissed. Passionately and for a long….long time. A simple kiss that marked the beginning of one stage that would bring some well needed happiness to both of their lives!

 **Sorry about the sort of rushed ending, I have had such a busy day and on the final few months of college so things have been a little all over the place but thanks again and see you for the next chapter where events and consequences will be revealed.**


	11. Chapter ELEVEN: One Week Later

**Chapter ELEVEN: One week later…**

 **Very SORRY for the upload I missed last week, it's the last week of college so you can imagine how busy I am. Still hope you enjoy this chapter and thanks for almost 1,500 views!**

What a week it's been for Maxine Caulfield!

It turned out that the Price household had not been too badly damaged during the storm. Although it was probably breaking a hundred rules, Joyce had declared her intention to get back to her home and sort it out for David's return. The past week had brung news on both David and Warren.

It was actually good news! For once.

Warren's amputation had gone okay with minimal issues and it appeared he was on the up witch made Max more than happy, her and Brooke had actually managed to visit him a few times which was nice and probably against the rules again.

David was also recovering and seemingly allot faster than Warren and although she wouldn't admit it, Chloe was very glad about it. Her and Joyce had worked so hard on fixing the house and replacing the broken furniture although the roof was still bent but was sturdy enough to live under according to a FEMA worker who 'evaluated' the house. Of course, the Price' weren't the only family who moved back into Arcadia Bay, many of the houses in the outskirts of the town were in stable condition in contrast to the 'ground zero' of the centre of the Bay. Max refused point blank to go anywhere near the centre as she was too scared to see it. She was trying to move on from everything and use her time to help the others and building on her relationship.

Max and Chloe! It was amazing! Through all the shit that went on, all the searching for survivors and worrying about Warren and David, there was one thing that made Max so happy and that was the beanie-wearing punk that Max had grown up with. They had only been together a week and already they felt invincible and nothing could separate them! Nothing.

It was now a Saturday morning in the Price residence and Max had awoken to the emptiness of the space next to her that was usually occupied by Chloe. She had been saying with Chloe for the week and would be remaining with them for a while yet. Of course Max's parents, Ryan and Venessa, had tried to get her to come back to Seattle with them but Max had flat out refused, preferring to stay with Chloe. Her parents were visiting for the first time since before the storm in a few days' time as they were unavailable at the time of the rescue effort and Max was scared. Scared to face them and scared to tell them about her and Chloe. Venessa Caulfield could be a little…unopen about such things and that only meant knives for Max's nerves.

However, she was even more scared at this time at the absence of her girlfriend. She looked around and the mess of Chloe's room had actually improved as they slightly cleaned it during the repairing process.

Max wiped her eyes and stretched her arms out wide.

"Chloe…where are you? Chloe…?" She knew that in the times following the storm, being alone was hard. It was still hard but getting better thank to Chloe and the loving embraces of the Price family. Kate and the others were also great to Max and they were meeting regularly to talk about all that happened. All except Victoria.

The sudden sound of rushed and heavy footsteps snapped Max out of her trance as Chloe burst through the door with the force of a bull raging at a matador.

"Jesus Max, what's wrong? Are you okay?" she snapped and hurried over to the bed. She sat by the hipster and lightly kissed her on the head. Chloe knew that always calmed her girlfriend when she was stressing and this time was no exception.

"Yeah, sorry about that Chloe. I was just, you know, a little surprised you weren't here is all. After all, I missed my morning hug" she beamed and sat up to hug the punk. Chloe sighed with relief. The last week had been tough on them both. Some days, Max slept fairly well and only tossed and turned in her sleep but at the beginning of the week she basically woke up screaming and crying. Chloe knew Max was a fighter and she was winning this battle!

"Shit Maxi-pad, you scared me there. Still the hug was good, I needed that! Anyway, mom is nearly done with breakfast and we better eat up before it goes cold. You seeing that Chase chick tomorrow?" she asked, returning the kiss. Max nodded in response. She had nearly forgotten about Victoria the past week. The two had last seen eachother when Victoria had asked to speak with her privately in the FEMA tent, however it never happened as Max had to rush of with Chloe soon after.

Worse still, it was only Thursday when Max had heard the terrible news.

Taylor and Courtney…hadn't made it.

Max was extremely saddened to hear this, even though the two had been known to be a little 'mean' and 'bratty' at times, they were actually nice people on the inside and they were also Victoria's best friends. Max knew that Victoria blamed herself even without speaking to her. Not too long after hearing the news, Max had contacted Victoria and asked to meet with her in the coming days and had only received the very simple response of…

 **Victoria:** ' _sure. Thx. Sunday. Near rescue place. Thx_ '

Max knew it was serious if Victoria Chase, the queen bitch who practically made her life hell, agreed and wanted to meet her. Chloe was quick to judge, of course.

"I still don't know why you want to meet that bitch. She gave you shit right through Blackwell. Ain't no one going to hurt my Max or they'll experience the full force of Price Power!" exclaimed Chloe, following up with a mock karate pose. This action gained a chuckle from the young hipster who got up and kissed Chloe once again before turning serious with her response,

"You know why and anyway, she may have been a bitch but she did tell me that found me pretty cool and only made fun of me because she was jealous" Max explained, looking directly into the punk's amazing blue eyes. Chloe tilted her head in confusion,

"The fuck she tell you that?.." she quizzed. Max had almost forgot that this never actually happened in this timeline. Rather than explain it, Max simply walked past the punk laughing as she did.

Max wondered over to the dresser and put on her famous shirt and jeans before yawning deeply. She dug out her phone from all the garbage on top of the dresser and located Kate's messages and began to type;

 **Max:** ' _Hey Kate. How are you doing? Sorry I haven't contacted you in like forever, it's been crazy! We should do something soon, me and Chloe would love to see you : )_

Whilst it was true, Max did want to see Kate after everything but she wanted to meet with her to tell her the news about her and Chloe and if Kate's beliefs may have an issue with it. Max doubted it as Kate was probably the nicest person she had ever met.

Max's phone then buzzed with the reminder that on Monday, she and Chloe as well as Joyce were going to visit Warren and David again and this time they may even be awake,

"I just texted Kate and asked if she wanted to meet us. You cool with that?" she asked Chloe.

"Hella yeah, it'll be cool to see the Marshmallow again. You know, I never really knew her but she's actually pretty cool. Another reason why I hate Sticky Vicky", Max laughed at the cute but childish nicknames Chloe came up with. Happy with the outcome of the morning, Max walked over to Chloe and grasped her hand in hers and gave her a large smile,

"I love you Chloe, I hope you know that and I know I said this like a hundred times but I'm never going to leave you. Not ever. Hella no" Max followed up with a big and loving kiss that probably lasted longer than it should of. Nearly taken aback by the sudden show of emotion, Chloe wrapped her arms around the hipster and launched them both onto the bed.

"A hundred and one couldn't hurt. I love you too my Super-Max, nothing is going to come between us. You bet your sweet skinny ass on that one!"

 **Thanks so much again for all the support. The next few chapter will go over a few more things in more detail such as the state of the town and more on the passing of both Courtney and Taylor. I know that seemed sudden but there is a point to it. Also I know FEMA wouldn't probably send people back into their homes that quick but for plot reasons I wanted to quicken things.**

 **P.S My heart goes out to everyone who is injured and who sadly was killed in the Manchester incident. It really saddens me!**


	12. Chapter TWELVE: The Dethroned Queen

**Chapter TWELVE: The Dethroned Queen**

Victoria Maribeth Chase sat quietly and patiently on a small wooden bench that looked older than her grandfather. The bench itself was located very close to the rescue centre in the outskirts of Arcadia Bay and it made Victoria feel uneasy. More than that!

Her life…was hell!

Ever since she had heard about Taylor and Courtney, she had hardly slept and spent the majority of her hours weeping to herself and cursing literally everything, mostly herself. Before the storm, Victoria would never cry in public or show any emotion that made her look weak. She used to believe that if she showed weakness, people wouldn't like or respect her but now she couldn't give a crap about that. About anything. Her hands were shacking but it wasn't cold. Her head was sweating and it wasn't particularly hot. She was just scared and shocked and didn't know what to do!

The struggling roar of the beat-up truck managed to scare of a full posse of squirrels. ' _Wowsers Samuel would totally give me a lecture. I really hope he's okay…haven't heard anything'_ thought Max as she hopped out of the passenger seat of Chloe's truck. It was actually a nice day and Max hoped this was an indication that the day was going to go well. She had to admit, she was kinda scared. Her and Victoria hadn't talked in a while properly and it wasn't a very nice subject either. Max huffed as she looked around to locate Victoria however couldn't initially see her until she spotted a lone figure in the distance, sitting on a bench. Her nerves were going crazy right now but she knew she had to do this.

"You sure you don't want me to come Max, you know my awesome-sauce ability to make people smile would probably help" beamed Chloe as she too exited the truck and lit a cigarette. Max smiled and have her girlfriend a hug and a kiss, being careful to avoid the burning stick in Chloe's hand.

"While you have got the power to make me happy whenever I see you Chlo, I think Victoria might be a little different. I just hope I don't screw this up, she probably isn't in the best of places right now" Chloe's face bunched up playfully at the response. Although she didn't have the best opinion of Chase, Chloe knew it was important for Max for two reasons; to prove that Victoria wasn't a complete bitch and to deal with the death of those two girls. Chloe always wondered if Max still blamed herself for the storm and the deaths it brung and it did hurt her to think about it however she tried to put it to the back of her mind.

"Yeah I guess so. Just please don't her walk on you like she used to. I won't let her okay, nobody hurts my Max! Anyway I better go, mom wants a lift to a store outside of town. Call me when you're finished okay and I'll come get you" Max agreed and once again entered a hug with Chloe. Out of all the shit that was going on, Max knew that Chloe could make everything happy for her and all it took was her smile to send Max into happiness. Chloe finished her cigarette and got back into the truck and with a final comedic wave, she departed leaving a small area of smoke that made Max cough. She glanced over to where Victoria was sitting and finally began to make her way over to the former queen bitch.

The first thing Max noticed about Victoria Chase is the eyes. They weren't just red, they seemed slightly grey and maybe purple! She had obviously been crying allot before their meeting. Her hair was also allot darker than normal and her infamous dress sense had diminished as all she was wearing was a simple jean and coat style in huge contrast to her normal style of posh and expensive. Max put her hand on her other arm as she did when she was nervous and tried to come up with a suitable greeting however she didn't have to wait long before the croaky voice of Victoria Chase broke the silence,

"Hey Max, thanks for coming. I…didn't really expect you to" she uttered. Max slowly sat down by Victoria and was going to put her hand on Victoria's knee however decided against it as she was still hesitant on what the reaction would be.

"Of course I came Victoria, yeah I get it we haven't exactly been best friends in the past but I'm here for you and so is everyone from Blackwell" Max thought that reminding Victoria of her friends would help and it seemed to as the she lifted her head slightly and looked at the hipster for a brief moment before returning her gaze to the ground. The response slightly surprised Max.

"Even Kate Marsh?" she asked slowly, as if wanting to avoid the question entirely. Max knew at some point Kate would be mentioned as Victoria probably blamed herself for Kate's near suicide. Max shook at the memory as it seemed so long ago but still so painful.

"Of course, she does. She doesn't blame you Victoria. I won't lie it was a pretty shitty thing to but it wasn't your fault. You know whose fault it was" upon uttering this, Max noticed Victoria shook a little bit as they both knew who Max was talking about. Mark Jefferson. Victoria had previously flirted with Jefferson until it was revealed who he really was and was taken to a prison outside of Arcadia Bay. Max angrily thought about how Jefferson had narrowly escaped death. Suddenly Victoria stood up and her fists clenched,

"That fucking monster! I never thought he could do that shit. All those girls and…Nathan. I never should of even talked to him Max, I could have been one of those girls" she exclaimed with seething anger. Max remembered in the alternate timeline in which Victoria had been taken by Jefferson but was glad she stopped that from happening.

Max got up and put her hands on Victoria's shoulder intending to calm her down however she violently pulled away and walked forward a little away from Max. The next words really hurt Max.

"I'm…sorry Max. For fucking everything. If that's what you wanted to hear then there it is. You can go if you want." She spoke with hints of anger although Max knew it wasn't directed at her, probably at herself.

"That's not why I'm here Victoria, not at all. I want to help you not fight. I know how hurt you must be about everything. What Jefferson did was evil and I see that Nathan was…disturbed not evil. We can talk about that later but maybe we should talk about what's really bothering you. I'm sorry about…Taylor and Courtney. I know you blame…" suddenly Victoria grabbed Max. She couldn't tell if it was a hug or an angry motion but it was probably both. Her tone indicated the later,

"It was my fucking fault. I had a hangover and I told them to get me some shit to help and I never saw them again. They died in Blackwell because of me, precious little me! I was a bitch to them and everyone who was kind to me and why? Because I was overcompensating like always. I wanted to be special and I didn't care who I fucked over in the process. Kate Marsh, you and even Taylor and C…Courtney. Me that's who, Victoria fucking Chase. The one who tried to sleep with a fucking psychopath and did sleep with his lapdog. I'm fucking sorry Maxine, but I can say that to you and Kate but not to Taylor and Courtney not anymore. I called them servants but they were really…my…best friends…" suddenly Victoria broke down completely and collapsed to the floor. Max grasped her mouth with her hand and backed away. She had never seen Victoria like this, vulnerable. She was crying and borderline shouting. Even Max was starting to tear up and bent down to hold the crying girl. This time she accepted the embrace and two cried together for their shared losses and the bad times. Max couldn't believe this was happening and didn't expect it. Victoria Chase was breaking and Max didn't know if she could fix it but she would be fucked if she gave up now.

Max remained holding Victoria for some time and the two of them were oblivious. Oblivious to the figure who was watching from behind the tree line.

 **Wow this chapter was awesome to write. I know it seems like I have changed Victoria's character allot but I do think this is what would happen if she lost her best friends. Also in a few chapters time I will be exploring the relationship between Chloe and Max in more detail as I seemed to have glossed over it slightly but it will come! Thanks to everyone who has supported me it means the world to me as always** **!**


	13. Chapter THIRTEEN: A man and his dog

**Chapter THIRTEEN: A man and his dog**

 **Hey everyone, in this chapter there will be a fair amount of speech rather than detail so I am sorry if you dislike that style of writing.**

The interesting thing about Frank Bowers is that if you look beyond the rough, tough and brutish exterior you can actually find a man who gives a shit. A man who gives a shit about those he cares about and although it's a short list he still cares. However, there is nothing in the world he loves more than his dog, Pompidou. He had rescued the poor animal from a dog fight and since then the two have built something; an unbreakable and immortal friendship that could not be severed. Max knew that nothing could break them apart but what she didn't know was that Frank Bowers himself was currently watching and waiting…for the perfect moment.

It had been around 15 tense and silent minutes since Victoria's breakdown and Max had no idea what to say. After allowing Max to help her, Victoria sat in silence for the whole time, looking deeply into the ground. Once again, Max held her arm and looked at the former queen bitch. Any makeup the girl had was now completely gone and her eyes remained that dark shade of sadness. It was a further 5 minutes before Victoria suddenly got to her feet and turned to face Max, she spoke like someone who had just lifted a huge weight from her shoulders,

"Okay…okay. Look Maxine I…don't know what that was. Never done it before, at least not in public anyways. I don't know what you expect of me now but I know i'm not fucking staying like this. Taylor and Courtney…wouldn't want that. I mean fuck, they'd want me to party my shit away but I'm probably not doing that either. Also, you didn't have to come but you did and that tells me something, it tells me that I probably have allot of shit to make up for. Can we…maybe…be friends?" with this statement, Max was surprised. Surprised that she could ask that and surprised it didn't contain any insults, for once.

Max stood up and once again brought the blonde into an embrace,

"Of course Victoria, I texted Kate a little while ago and asked to meet her and you can come too, it would be nice for us all to hang out for once. The Blackwell Three! It kinda has a ring to it and I won't take no for an answer!" Max smiled. Victoria seemed to shiver slightly at the mention of Kate but nevertheless smiled and nodded. They were about to talk more about the future meeting, which Max was debating whether or not it was a good idea or not, before a loud barking made the two jump.

The sudden appearance of Pompidou startled both Max and Victoria. It was Max who was most surprised to see the dog as the last time she saw the animal was in an alternate timeline during the storm. She had heard that the two had made it out but she didn't expect to see either of them any time soon. Max bent down to the dog and lightly pet him and smiled. It wasn't too long ago that Pompidou would snarl at the very presence of the young hipster however the two had formed an attachment.

"Hey boy, he cutie. I'm so glad your safe! How you doing boy?" Max asked, lightly stroking the dog.

"Uh…Caulfield…is that…Frank Bowers?" asked Victoria, who was now standing up and was surprised at the sudden arrival of an unusually smarter looking man. Max looked up to see Frank Bowers entering her line of sight and was sort of taken aback at his appearance. Gone, was the rough and damaged look of a drug addict and thug and in its place was a man who, whilst still wearing a similar style, looked smarter and who's hair was now brushed and looked clean. His clothes also appeared to be much cleaner since their last meeting. He even spoke with a slightly less croaky voice than usual.

"Hey Max. This is probably going to sound weird but it's good to fucking see ya. You too Vicky. I was going to come and talk earlier but I saw you both…having a moment and I didn't want to get involved in that shit. No offense. I was hanging around and saw you and wanted to tell you something." He gestured to Pompidou to come over to him and with a huff, he left Max and sat lovely next to his owner. Max thought about hugging Frank but then decided against it as she didn't even know if they were technically friends. Instead she just opted to speak and smile;

"Holy shit it's awesome to see you Frank honest. Go ahead and tell me, we were just working some things out" Max sat back down on the bench with Victoria. Victoria looked to be slightly uncomfortable, maybe because the last time her and Frank had spoken was to ask him for drugs. Frank walked over to a bin by the bench and opted to lean on it instead of sitting with the two girls.

"Well, I know I aint exactly been a saint and I've done some pretty crazy shit in my time but I think it's time to move on. Maybe from this shitty town, I don't know but it's defiantly the end of my 'old business'. I want to stop that shit and actually find a real job. I also heard about you and Price and wanted to say I'm actually happy for you both, I mean you are both are crazy as shit and weird me out more than anyone else in this town but you seem cool and that means I'm cool too. You both done right by me so I wanted to say thanks I guess and to say if you ever need anything then i'll be in town for a few more days before I decide to head out or not". Max now had a wide grin on her face, now she did get up and hug Frank. Pompidou made a slight snarl as she went near Frank but was soon remedied by a stroke from Max. Max thought about telling him about Rachel knowing that the two had something a while back but decided not to as he seemed to be in such a happy mood. Frank was taken aback by the sudden hug and so was Victoria who had no idea what to say or do.

"Uhh okay, the fuck was that for?" he asked but without a tone of anger. Max smiled and almost skipped over to Victoria. What she said next almost seemed like a speech.

"Everything is actually **happy** for once. I knew that fucking storm wouldn't ruin things. Not everything anyway. Sure, it has taken away loved ones and people we care about but we aren't letting it break us. We are all **trying**. Victoria, you are working through shit you never would of before and we can both move past the bad stuff that has happened to us and become friends and Frank, you have realised what you were doing was hurting people and you have owned up to it and have stopped it. As for me, I have the most beautiful person in the world as my girlfriend and when I get back, I am going to tell her that. Thank you, both of you for showing me that we can all move past this and be happy. That is why I hugged you Frank." With that, and a final goodbye and reassurance to Victoria, Max began to walk away towards the spot where Chloe had dropped her off and got her phone out in order to call her girlfriend. Victoria and Frank just stood there, not knowing what to say, looking almost shocked and maybe even impressed with what they just saw. In fact, Victoria began to smile slightly. Happy about allot of things. Happy that she was making things right!

 **Thanks for reading everyone, next chapter will contain Pricefield fluff. Soon we will explore the relationship between Kate and Victoria and how they will act towards eachother. I am excited for that part!**


	14. Chapter FOURTEEN: The Power of Price!

**Chapter FOURTEEN: The Power of Price**

 **First of all, I am SO SO sorry for the week break again! I have my final A-Level exam next Thursday so after that, it's back to weekly uploads :D Because of my week away, here is a chapter full of PRICEFIELD and some Kate stuff!**

Maxine Caulfield had accomplished the impossible! She had turned 'the queen bitch' into someone who can and will become a good person and even maybe Max's friend. Also, Kate had finally replied to her text asking to meet up with her and the two had an incredible conversation regarding Victoria;

 **Kate:** ' _I'm so sorry Max, I've been so busy helping out with the rescue which is going well by the way, we even found out that Mrs. Grant is okay and so is Samuel. Warren and Mr Madsen are doing good too and are looking forward to your visit tomorrow. I even got my bunny back_ _but yeah I would love to see you and Chloe again soon!_

 **Max:** ' _Hey Katie, I'm glad everyone is safe and sound and me and Chloe will see everyone tomorrow! It's so awesome that Alice is okay, give her a kiss for me! Also, is it okay if Victoria comes with us when we meet? We met and she feels SO guilty over how she treated you and even cried. She really feels bad…_

 **Max:** ' _Oh, I kind of unexpected that but I am someone who believes in forgiveness Max so of course I will see her. Thanks Max, we'll talk more tomorrow I have to go and tend to Warren. See you Max!_

Ecstatic that the 'Blackwell Three' will meet soon and also a little scared over how thing will go, Max put her phone away and turned to her beautiful girlfriend who was sitting next to her in their bed. It was still weird for Max to call Chloe's bed 'their bed' but she was getting used to it. She was even thinking of asking to move in permanently! Max knew that Joyce and probably even David would both me okay with it but it was her parents, Ryan and Venessa, who she wasn't in a hurry to ask. Hell, she hadn't even put the idea by Chloe yet. She was waiting for when her parents came down to visit on Wednesday. Her parents were meant to be visiting sooner but they were heavily advised not to visit yet by officials however they made sure they phoned their daughter every day to ask how she was doing.

The blue haired angel wrapped her arms around the hipster suddenly and launched into a barrage of kisses. Max was taken by surprise but still heavily enjoyed the love shown by her amazing girlfriend.

"Wow Chloe, that was…just awesome. Honestly!" she exclaimed, just in complete ecstasy from the show of love. Chloe then proceeded to practically collapse into Max's lap and stare directly into Max's blue eye's.

"Was it as amazing as…last night?" she quizzed with her signature cocky and childish tone. Max immediately blushed following this question.

"Chloe! That's so un-cool. I have to say though, nothing was as amazing as last night Chlo" replied Max. The two of them had engaged in…intimate activates but Max never wanted to go further, probably due to her experience with Jefferson however, after Max's victory with Victoria and Frank, she felt invincible and decided to say ' _fuck Jefferson and that damn storm! I love Chloe and I'm going to show it!'_ and it turned out to be one of the most amazing nights of her life. She knew she wanted to spend the rest of her life with this amazing girl right in front of her!

"I know right, we were like two wild animals! In a totally good way though and you gotta admit, I was good wasn't I! I told you Caulfield, I have the power of Price!" this exclamation gained a huge chuckle form Max and then proceeded to kiss the punk directly on the lips. Chloe then decided to be a little cheeky with her next question;

"Well, I could really use a shower. Care to join me Maxi-pad? With us both in there, we might not even need lotion" she winked and then got up to the bathroom. It took Max a few seconds to deduce what Chloe was trying to infer with her comment and went an even brighter shade of red once she figured it out.

"Seriously you dork, one day I'm going to…"

"Do what? Make me shut up? You could hop in the shower with me and do what you did last night. That certainly made me shut up!" she again winked and chuckled at the dirty memory. With this comment, Max got straight to her feet and marched into the bathroom across the hall where her dirty minded girlfriend was located. Chloe gave her a cocky grin when she walked in but that grin soon dissipated when the contents of a nearby shampoo container came hurling her way and settled all over he clothes. With this action of war, Max began to laugh out loud.

"Hey, no fair I wasn't expecting that. You got this shit all over my clothes…Maxine!" she made sure that she stretched out the last word over a few seconds, knowing full well it would piss of the hipster to hell. In response to this, Max began to undress and stepped into the tub before Chloe even had a chance to take her shirt off.

"Sorry dork, this is taken. I guess you'll have to deal with your smelly feet all day without a wash" Max joked as she turned the water on. Chloe smiled once again and jumped straight into the tub with Max, nearly knocking the skinny woman over.

"Hey, some people are into that you know. Why don't you give it a TRY?" Chloe practically shouted as she began to push and shove Max playfully. The two eneded up washing together for the first, and probably not the last, time and truly had an amazing time once again. They both knew it was going to be an intense week; tomorrow they had to go and visit David and Warren and although this was a good thing, they couldn't help but worry. Then, the next day, Max's parents were visiting and Max knew what her mother was like and telling her that Chloe and her were a couple was going to be hard as well as Max's wish to remain with Chloe permanently. However, both Max and Chloe looked forward to their outage with Victoria and Kate, with Chloe it was mostly for Max and Kate. Little did Max know that by the end of the week, Chloe was going to ask Max a question. A question that will make both of their lives even more amazing and truly cement their love. It was a moment that will truly…'engage' a loving response!

 **First I apologise for the terrible pun at the end there, it was just a teaser. I know it may seem a little early however Max and Chloe have known eachother for so long and I thought it would be an interesting move for the fic! Also I wanted to say thank you all for nearly 2,500 views! It is such an incredible milestone and each and every one of you are awesome and I thank you so much!**


	15. Chapter FIFTEEN: The Apology!

**Chapter FIFTEEN: The apology!**

The journey to the rescue centre was hard. Hard because of the state of Arcadia Bay, still in ruins and only slowly rebuilding, that made Max still feel hugely uneasy and scared. Max, Joyce and Chloe were once again visiting the injured David and Warren, they had made the same journey a few times and it was still hard for Max and Chloe to truly see the devastation that they could of caused. The carcasses of the shops and homes of the residents of Arcadia Bay still littered the ruined streets, creating the illusion of a grave yard full of misery and regret. The roads were clear enough so that small vehicles could drive through without too much trouble but it still looked like an ancient ruin of some once prosperous community.

"Max honey, are you okay?" came the soft tone of Joyce. Max suddenly looked up at her and smiled,

"Of course Joyce, I'm just worried about Warren and David. I know they're both talking now but that actually kinda makes it scarier. I don't really know what they are going to say" she admitted, once again returning to a frown. Chloe took this opportunity to make once of her famous cocky comments that she was known for,

"What do you expect them to say Max? condemn you to hell or something?" she laughed but quickly stopped once she remembered. Joyce shook her head at her daughter's silliness and continued to give Max a reassuring and warm smile.

The journey didn't take them long although it felt like hours to Max. She was excited to speak to both Warren and David but she wasn't too sure. Both men were originally going to be taken to an actual hospital but both of their injuries were healing at a really good rate so there was no need right now although with Warren's recent amputation, he would have to visit one in the coming days for sure. David ,on the other hand, was ready to get up and get back to normal life, he was a soldier after all, always brave. Max knew Chloe was scared to talk to David and Max had spent hours the previous day speaking to Chloe and doing everything she can to soothe her girlfriend. Well, mostly speaking.

The three girls were greeted by the familiar face of the man they had met all that time ago. Luke was smiling as ever and spoke to Max as if they were old friends. They had collectively decided to speak to David first as Warren still needed a little more time to rest. Max was happy to see Kate Marsh standing and smiling near to the tent where David was located.

"Hey Kate, it's so good to see you again!" Max exclaimed as the two entered a hug.

"It's good to see you too Max and hey Chloe" Kate replied as she also gave a hug to the punk. Chloe made a weird noise as if she was surprised that Kate was hugging her. Max wasn't at all surprised as Kate was one of the kindest and sweetest people she had every met.

"Woah, careful there Marshmallow, you might make Maxey here a little jealous" she joked. This earned a laugh from Kate witch then turned into a surprised and confused one.

"What do you…oh wait do you mean you two are?..." she asked, her voice rising a little but not sounding angry.

Mac and Chloe looked nervously at eachother for a second before Max nodded meekly and spoke silently with a small amount of fear as to Kate's reply;

"Yeah, we're together. I was actually kinda worried to tell you as I don't know if you're beliefs would allow for this sort of thing" she said. Max felt Chloe clutch her hands and when she looked up, she saw a quite confident gaze that only Chloe knew how to do. Kate looked at the floor for a second then raised her head with her trademark smile and bought both Chloe and Max into a soft group hug.

"Max you know me, of course I have no problem with it. God loves all the people on earth no matter who they date so please don't worry, I'm totally happy for you both" she exclaimed. Max felt a huge relief as she said this and smiled widely. Chloe chose to don a cocky grin and nod as she did when she was impressed,

"Wow Kate, I didn't how badass you were. You totally gave the regular Christian family values bullshit the finger. You my good friend have earned my respect" she then proceeded to extend her hand as if she was some sort of mafia boss. Kate looked a little embarrassed, probably due to Chloe's language, but still shook Chloe's hand and smiled.

Kate led Joyce, Chloe and Max to where David was situated. There was about a thousand things that were racing through the mind of all of them as they first laid eyes on the wounded soldier. David was hooked up to a few machines that were currently beeping a high pitched melody and there was a large white bandage wrapped around the man's head. The various cuts around his head, particularly the one around his lip, had almost vanished and the bandages looked clean unlike the first time. Max looked at Chloe and saw a mixture of sadness and confusion on the punk's face. _Jesus Chloe, I hope you're okay. I don't know what I can say,_ she thought to herself. She chose to simply grasp her girlfirends hand and kiss it lightly. Chloe and smiled back at Max and returned the gesture and for a small second, Max could of sworn she saw a tear penetrate her blue eyes.

Joyce knelt down near David's bed and smiled,

"David darlin', can you hear me? It's me Joyce. I brought Chloe and Max with me, we all came to visit you…as a family." She spoke softly. Joyce reached out her hand towards her daughter. Chloe didn't move to begin with but simply chose to stare.

"Uhh…I don't know about this" Chloe said nervously. Max softly pulled Chloe's chin towards her own, similarly to how Chloe did for her when she was upset.

"Chloe, you'll be fine and so will he. I know things were…complicated for you two but remember what I told you. Things will get better I promise but it all starts with you. You can do it Chlo, I know you can!". These words of wisdom was all Chloe needed before happily nodding at her girlfriend and then proceeding to join her mother at the side of the man she hated for so many damn years.

Joyce gestured to her daughter and said,

"Go ahead honey, he won't bite". _Yeah, like he hasn't in the past,_ Chloe thought to herself. She decided to lean in closer to the man in order for him to hear her more clearly. Max could tell that this was hard for Chloe, allot harder than she could ever imagine. It's true that Max was scared to visit Warren but not nearly as scared as Chloe was. The history between them was less that stellar and back then, Chloe probably wouldn't have cared as much but she had changed this last week and Max could tell and she hoped David could as well. Chloe smiled as she spoke her next words, her voice slightly shacky from her mixed feelings,

"Hey old man, I made the effort to bring my lazy ass all the way down here so the least you could do is speak" she joked. David shifted slightly but still no response came. Joyce began to stroke his head as if to say it was all okay. Chloe, on the other hand, was getting slightly concerned. The doctors, Kate and that Luke dude had all said he was talking and ready to get the hell out so why was he not moving now. Chloe frowned at the thought of caring so much for a guy that had caused her so much grief and even pain but then her mind reminded her that she hadn't exactly been the model step-daughter either. She straightened herself up slightly,

"Hey, you awake? Come on don't ignore me now, I actually wanna talk if you can believe it. I know I aint been perfect but I'm ready to talk now so…wake up dude" the last part of her sentence was slightly quickened and higher pitch. Joyce looked at Max with a concerned and troubled expression as she too was wondering why her husband was not saying anything. Still nothing.

Max now had her hands over her mouth, ' _no…no…please not you David, not now. Please, please don't do this'_ she thought rapidly. By this point, Kate had turned and ran to get someone who could help, someone who wasn't busy.

Chloe then did the most surprising thing out of all them. She stood up and began to speak, almost shout, at the ex-soldier. Chloe couldn't believe she was saying this and never imagined she would make such a speech to anyone, let alone David Madsen,

"Look…David I'll admit it okay, I fucked up! Me, okay. Yeah you were an asshole and yeah, I wanted to run away so many times and I even did once but once thing I never fucking did was admit I was wrong. My fucking dad died and then suddenly you came along, like you were supposed to replace him and I fucking hated you for that…" at this point, Joyce had gone to hold her daughter but Chloe brushed her off. Both Max and Joyce were both in tears now, not just concerned for David but Chloe as well. Chloe continued her speech,

"I'm sorry okay, is that what you wanted to hear. I was fucked up after dad died and Rachel went missing and I still am but now I actually WANT to get better and I want you to wake the fuck up so don't disappoint me again motherfucker, wake up. Wake up and look after my mom…wake up and bust my ass for smoking pot again…wake up…and…be my fucking step-dad!" after all that, Chloe was breathing loudly and on the verge of full on crying. Max was holding Joyce at this point who was fully in tears now and who's head was buried in Max's shoulder. Three doctors had rushed in with Kate not far behind them.

Yet still…nothing.

It was now that Chloe had given up the façade and had begun to cry. She had placed her head onto the quilt what was covering her step-fathers stomach and wept softly. Joyce took Joyce from Max as she rushed over to her girlfriend's side and wept with her. There was nothing she could but repeat she was sorry over and over again. There was nothing…

"C…Ch". The noise was almost a blurred whisper. They had all heard it but couldn't register it at first. Chloe looked at the man before her. His head moved slightly and his eye-lashed flickered. That simple movement was all it took for everyone to rush by his side. The noise cam again,

"C…Ch…Chloe?" David's voice came like a wave over everyone, taking them all by surprise. Chloe came closer to his head, listening in closely like a hawk. It was then that an amazing thing happened, he opened his eyes. He looked around the room slightly, confused and then began to cough softly than ultimately transformed into a slight chuckle and looked directly at Chloe, his step-daughter. The first proper words he spoke sent a shiver of happiness over Chloe as she smiled slightly at the soldier who she now considered to be her proper step-father,

"Chloe…did I hear you just right?...were you smoking pot again?" his pained face morphed into a grin as he joked.

 **Wow…that was an awesome chapter to write. I hope you all really liked this one and please do feel free to leave a comment or a request for something you would like to see or some improvements I could make** **Next time, Max will visit Warren and we will get a little more insight into Chloe's plans for Max as well as Max confronting someone who, in the past, was a little… jealous of her. Thanks again everyone!**


	16. Chapter SIXTEEN: The Madsen Atonement!

**Chapter SIXTEEN: The Madsen Atonement!**

Who is Chloe Price? To many people, she is just one of those regular asshole punks who hates everyone but herself. Those who actually know her, know the REAL Chloe Price, someone who cares a hella lot for those she loves and would do anything to help them, with a healthy dose of complaining for good measure of course.

To David Madsen, Chloe was irrational and irresponsible, who constantly blasted some 'punk shit' music throughout the house and did everything in her power to make his life a living hell.

That's what he used to think, anyway.

It took a massive storm and half the damn town to be destroyed for him to truly realise what Chloe was to him. He always acted tough to Chloe as he knew she would never accept him as part of her family but that never stopped him actually caring for her. She never knew that. She never knew how much he actually wanted to help her in allot of ways. She also never knew that those few times he actually hit her, he felt pain and instantly regretted it. David had always thought that he may be helping her in some way by showing her that the world she lived in was tough, relentless and unforgiving. It was only know he realised he wasn't in a war anymore and the world around him was not as violent as he often made it out to be. He should have been teaching Chloe the world COULD be nice and COULD be an opportunity for her. It took a damn storm for him to realise that!

"Ho…holy shit David! That actually worked, huh. You didn't believe any of that mushy shit right?" came Chloe's seemingly painful words. Through half opened eyes, David could see that she was slowly wiping away tears and trying her darndest to hide the fact she was crying. Before he could even think of responding, four or five doctors came rushing up to him in order to check his readings and make sure he was okay.

 _I don't need this, I'm fine, not like I've been through worse shit than this in the war. I don't want Joyce…my family seeing me like this,_ he thought as they all made a fuss around him. He began to raise his hand to brush the doctors of and speak to Chloe but the order from his wife halted any such action,

"David honey, I'm glad your okay but you have to let these men do their jobs okay sweetie? We'll wait over there" she claimed, gesturing over to a bench near the corner of the tent. They all left the doctors to do their job, with Chloe being the last to leave David's side and he could of sworn he saw a faint smile on his step-daughters face.

It was about an hour before they could see him again but it felt like a year to the wounded ex-soldier. He looked over and saw Max Caulfield hug Chloe and plant a small kiss on her cheek before leaving with a doctor. He guessed that she was going to see her friend who had the amputation a while back. The girl who he had saved, Kate Marsh, had told him about it during the previous week. David had learned allot recently, especially about Kate Marsh. He was wrong about her. All that time in the army, with his commanding officer constantly telling him that the American army were never wrong, had made it hard to admit he's wrong, particularly out loud. With Kate Marsh, it was different. He thought of her as a faker, someone who used her religion to get attention and that video from the Vortex Club party only served to prove him right in his mind but now he saw her as innocent in a world that is trying to take innocence away from everybody. _That dirty bastard Jefferson almost did it too, I never liked that scumbag,_ he thought. The very thought of what Jefferson was doing made David's stomach curdle, especially due to him being so close and never seeing the truth. Now, he will have to live with that. Amongst other things.

After having a lengthy and beautiful conversation with Joyce, which ended with them both professing their love for eachother once again, it was Chloe's turn. David knew she was nervous. Hell, he couldn't lie, he was too! He was confident though as for the first time since they met, he knew what to say to her. That made him smile at least. Chloe nervously strolled up to his bed, walking with her signature 'I don't give a shit if you don't like it' walk. When she actually made it to his side, there was silence for a long time before David suddenly broke the silence. He had spent the past few days trying to think of what to say to his step-daughter and only recently came up with the idea to begin with an explanation and then go into an apology.

"So…Chloe, I think I owe you an explanation. Hell, I owe you allot more than that but…it's a start, right?" he chuckled at the end. Chloe awkwardly sat on the chair beside his bed and stared at him. Was it anger he could see? Or maybe regret. David was never good at recognising those sorts of things. Seeing that Chloe was not going to talk just yet, he continued to carry on through his speech,

"Yeah so…I spent a long time in a war as you know. Now I'm not trying to excuse my shit but the least I can do is put a reason behind it. In the war, I kinda screwed up. Not surprising I know but I did. Badly. I had this friend who was on watch one night and he was serious about what he was doing. I, on the other hand, was too stoned out of my damn mind to give a shit." With this revelation, Chloe's jaw dropped. Still not saying a word, Chloe stiffened a little in her seat. David looked down to the ground, ashamed at what he was about to admit.

"Yeah, I was a stoner. Not a big one but I did it a few times. We snuck it into camp sometimes when the OC wasn't looking. Anyway, I was starting shit with this other guy and my friend came in and tried to calm us down, saying we were being too noisy and how we were fucking up the mission. I…got angry, too up my own ass to give a damn I suppose" his voice had now drained into a whisper and was cracking. He had done something so bad that had turned him into a paranoid mess and he was about to say what it was that he had done. With tears in his eyes, he carried on,

"You know, it takes a f…fucking tragedy to let you know what people mean to you. War was hard and my friend always did his best to make sure I got through it without a scratch. He even told me I was going to be his best man at his wedding. That's why it was so hard when what happened…happened" he was not in tears, fully breaking down in front of the same person who he had tried to hide his emotions from for a long time.

"It was my fucking fault Chloe. I had convinced him that I heard something, a noise from just outside the camp. I only did it so I could punch the guy I was arguing with right in his goddamn jaw. I didn't know the…enemy was watching us and waiting for chance to get us. He found that out whilst the rest of us were high and fucked up. We didn't hear anything. It's the silence that I think I hated the most. Silence for four whole days whist he was missing. We only found out a week later what happened to him. He was goddamn tortured Chloe, to the point where it took his girlfriend a while before she recognised him. He was…killed when he wouldn't tell them shit about us. About the very people who…killed him. Your mom always tells me that I'm a hero for what I went through in the way but I aint shit but a coward and a damn liar. You want to know why I'm a paranoid jackass, why I'm such a step-douche? I care about you Chloe, more than you can know. I know you lost your dad and I know what loss is and it damn near broke me. It turned me into what I was when we first met. I didn't want you to go down the same path as me and…I am so fucking sorry. I can't lose you or your mom. If I do, I don't what I'll do so I promise you now Chloe, I will NEVER hit you again and I will always protect you, your mom and Max. My family." The weight of what he had just said had damn hear destroyed his throat. He was shaking with fear and sadness. He was actually vulnerable. He couldn't even look at Chloe.

David went to reach for a glass of water but was stopped when the familiar hand of Chloe Price presented him with the water. It was then that he decided to look up at his step-daughter. He saw tears in his eyes and something he hadn't seen in a long time in anyone other than Joyce. Understanding. She smiled at him, the tears now making their way down her face. She spoke with a voice that was full of not only regret but happiness too. She was happy that she finally knew why he acted the way he did. Happy that Max was right. Happy that she had a step-dad not a step-douche. She bent down and planted small kiss on his cheek before standing up again.

"Well, I have to give to you…" she started between sniffles.

"You do know how to get someone to feel guilty as shit, you and mom have that in common I guess. You don't need to be sorry, if anything it's me who has to. Max always said you weren't what I thought you to be. I'm not lying though dude, I aint about to just forgive you for all the shit you put me through but there is something I can do. You can't be my dad but you can be my…step father. We can both start again and I swear to god I will never be a pain in the ass to you again. Well, not on purpose anyway. Well what do you say old man? Can we actually work our shit out and become a family?" she asked smiling. David could tell she was serious and he knew this was a big deal for her. He smiled in return and he now knew he could start properly atoning for what he did.

"You got it, ma'am." He exclaimed proudly. He was proud of Chloe and from now on he always will be. Chloe began to head back to where Joyce was waiting before turning around and revealing her own admission that made David far more prouder than he ever thought he could be.

"By the way…how would you feel about having another step-daughter…in law or whatever it is. I'm kind of thinking about proposing to Max!"

 **Well, that was probably my favourite chapter to write and I really wanted to show you all how David feels. Thank you so much for over 3,000 views it is so awesome! Now that my A-Level exams are now officially over I can get back to more regular uploads! Thanks so much everyone again!**


	17. Chapter SEVENTEEN: Angels and Demons

**Chapter SEVENTEEN: Angels and Demons**

 **Hey everyone, this is a special short chapter focusing on Kate Marsh and her feelings. I will be starting regular uploads every Monday now** **Thanks everyone!**

Kate Marsh had many different nicknames, allot of them she hated and most of them involved her faith in some way. One that stuck in her mind, was the name that her grandfather had given her when she was very young, he called her his 'bunny angel'. She never really knew why but she loved it and she loved him. Kate had tried her hardest through her life to impress her parents and often overcompensated in order to do that but with her grandfather, she never felt she had to do that and felt so loved when she was with him. Oh, how she missed him.

Kate's mind drifted back to the man in front of her. David Madsen looked so peaceful. Kate felt very guilty as she had spent allot of her time in Blackwell believing the head of security to be a bully and a very bad man. It wasn't until the day when that awful storm had set upon its journey of destruction and suffering over Arcadia Bay that she truly saw who David was. Her parents had been driving her back to their home from the hospital and they had gotten caught up right in the heart of it and their car had broken down, stranding them. That was when David had saved her life. As soon as Kate saw him, she had directed her family over to where he was to get them to safety and had made sure her family were safe before she was. She didn't see the shrapnel heading right for her until the man she once condemned a bully practically jump in the way. Her father had managed to pick the man up and take him to the outskirts where they could all be safe and wait for the rescue team. Of course, it wasn't as simple as all that but when she thought about it, it made her sad.

Kate set about her duties and bought fresh blankets and a fresh glass of water to David's side. His family would be here soon to visit him and she was excited to see Max and Chloe again. She left his side with a smile and walked to go and get herself a drink. As she walked, Kate glanced at her phone and read the texts sent from Max to her.

Victoria!

The name still was etched in her mind. She didn't know what to feel. The girl had damn near ruined her life with that video. If it wasn't for Max, she would not be here right now. If only Victoria hadn't spread that video around Blackwell however, Kate reminded herself of David and how she pre-judged him and how wrong she was. Kate smiled to herself at the thought of all being well with another bully in her life. She quietly thanked God for the opportunities she was presented with.

As she walked around the camp, she looked at all the suffering that was going on around her. Doctors and nurses were running around, franticly trying to help the injured. Kate hated to see some of the worst of them and it made her feel horrible inside. She believed strongly in the Lord and all the wisdom he bought and that God had a plan but this really tested her faith. How can God allow all this to happen? Lives had been lost, good people like Taylor and Courtney had lost their lives in the horrible storm. She did thank God, that Max had made it. Max, her guardian angel, had saved her that day on the roof and she would never forget it. She had only met Chloe and her mother a few times but she knew they were good people too. Kate felt like they were all one big family and really appreciated them. Maybe David and Victoria could join that family someday. Someday soon.

Kate very strongly believed in forgiveness and she had already forgiven Mr. Madsen but with someone like Victoria, it may take a while but she was confident it could be done. The loud creek of the gates symbolised the arrival of the Price-Madsen's and their plus one. Kate was tense and couldn't wait to see them all. She had many demons in her life, but her angels surrounded her and she was so proud of it all. Her signature smile appeared on her face. It was time to move on with her life and start repaying everyone who had saved her. Kate's life was about to get so much better form here on out.

 **Sorry that was a bit short and maybe lacking in content but this is the first of a few small chapters focusing on Kate. They will appear every now and then and I hope you all like them aha :D Thanks again everyone!**


	18. Chapter EIGHTEEN: Happy Revelations!

**Chapter EIGHTEEN: Happy Revelations!**

It had been one long-ass day!

Warren attempted to position himself more comfortably on his bed but this only resulted in more pain. He groaned at the surge of agony but then smiled to himself. He could actually feel pain! For a while, it seemed like he may not feel anything again but he was glad he could and he was already waiting for his chance to visit more drive-in's and 'go ape!'. He hoped it would be with Max or maybe even Brooke. The black, slightly dyed, hair of Brooke Scott made Warren once again smile as he looked over to her, sitting on a chair staring at him. It was true that Warren once had major feelings for Max but Brooke had been coming to see him so often recently and this had an effect on the young man. He kinda really liked her and the two recently had admitted their feelings for eachother! Max would be coming to see him very soon and he was worried…worried about how she and Brooke would get on. He had found out, from Brooke obviously, that she had acted selfishly against the hipster and had made a few 'unbecoming' comments back in Blackwell, before the storm. Warren knew that Brooke somewhat regretted her actions against Max but he only hoped neither would say anything to cause any shit!

Well…he knew Max probably wouldn't.

Max readied herself. She really liked Warren and was one of her best friends and someone she could truly trust but…he had a crush on her. It was kind of hugely obvious. She would to tell him eventually about her and Chloe so it may as well be now. Max thought about everything Warren had gone through the past few weeks, particularly the amputation. Apparently, it was healing surprisingly well and it wouldn't be amazingly long before he got out of there.

The tent she was in smelled. A mixture of antiseptic and sweat. Once again, Max had to remind herself what Chloe said about the storm and the resulting devastation not being her fault. She often had a little crying session whenever she thought about she might have done but this was not one of those moments! _Come on Max, you have to stay strong for Warren's sake, no more of this self-destruction bullshit,_ she reminded herself, with the fury of a drill sergeant. The doctor who had bought Max to where Warren was pointed over to her friend and left in a hurry, proclaiming he had other duties to attend to. Max once again prepared herself and began to walk over, only to be surprised to see another familiar face by Warren's bed.

The look of Warren's leg, or lack thereof, always made Max feel very queasy. Of course, the actual stump wasn't openly visible and was instead bandaged strongly and hidden under a quilt. The hospital in Arcadia Bay had been almost fully repaired, not being entirely destroyed during the storm, and most of the critically injured had been moved there, this meant the rescue camp was allot less crowded and this was a very good thing as it meant patients had much more privacy. Max moved closer to Warren. This was the first time the two had talked in a while, properly anyway, as he was either to drugged or being monitored closely by the doctors. Two chairs were conveniently placed next to Warren's bed and one was occupied by Brooke Scott, who Max had not seen since she first arrived at the camp. Max, smiling shyly, glanced at Brooke and spoke with a quiet confidence,

"Hi Brooke, I didn't expect to see you here today." She claimed. Brooke looked at the floor and made a face as if she had just been directly insulted.

"Wow, thanks Max. No, how are you? or nice to see you. Sorry if I always get in the way…" noticing the small amount of bile in her words, Brooke stopped herself. It wasn't long ago that she had made peace with Max and had admitted she was being selfish for the way she spoke to her. She wasn't about to let her previous jealousy get in the way of things now. Brooke found herself standing up and pulling Max into a friendly hug.

"Sorry Max, I didn't mean to sound like that…again" she assured her. Max smiled and proudly returned the hug,

"It's okay Brooke, I'm sorry things have never been that great between us in the past. I bet your missing your drone huh?" she joked. Brooke chuckled at the joke and nodded. She did miss the drone!

Max and Brooke both took a seat and began to chat for a while with Warren. It had been so long since the three had all talked properly as friends. Max even spoke to them about her plans to form a group of survivors from Blackwell to talk every other weekend or so and hang out. She had gained this idea from her meeting with Victoria. Although Brooke was a little hesitant about seeing everyone again, she eventually caved and agreed it would be nice to see her old friends. Warren, unsurprisingly, was ecstatic about the idea and even suggest they all visit a drive-in, like some big family outing. Of course, the conversation drifted into talking about Warren's leg.

"So…" Max began, "How have you been Warren? I mean with the leg and…you know, does it hurt or feel weird?" she asked. Being nosy had always been a problem with Max and had often got her into more trouble than she wanted, especially with her parents. Warren seemed to become very energetic when talking about his injury. _Leave it to Warren Graham to practically geek out when talking about an amputated limb,_ thought Max.

"Oh Max, it's been so weird. It's like it's still there and I swear sometimes I can totally feel my toes wiggling. Honestly it is really strange. Don't worry though, we can still go ape at a drive in sometime, an amputated leg is not stopping me from doing that!" he promised. Max noticed Brooke wince slightly at the mention of the word 'together'. It was not that Max decided to bring up the topic of her and Chloe. She had greatly feared talking about this to Warren and was scared of his reaction. She imagined the soft, yet firm, hand of her girlfriend come down on her shoulder. The mere thought of the deep and beautifully blue eyes of Chloe Price have her all the confidence she needed and she suddenly perked up.

"I can't wait Warren but make sure to get better first, I couldn't bear the thought of you passing out during one of those crappy vampire movies" she joked, even gaining a slight laugh from Brooke.

"Listen, I have something to tell you both. It's good news actually, surprising I know. You both know Chloe, right? Chloe Price, the…blue haired girl?" she asked the both of them. Warren nodded almost immediately but Brooke took some time before remembering who Max was referring to.

"Well, me and her have been spending allot of time together and we even survived together during the storm. Well…we're together now" she beamed. Surpassingly, Brooke was very happy about it and once again hugged Max and gave her best wishes for the future however, most surprisingly of all was the reaction of Warren. Max had expected him to be saddened by the news and whilst she tried not to be vain, she at least expected some sort of upsetting reaction however this wasn't the case and Warren's face lit up with happiness. Max was sure that if he could, Warren would have jumped up and pulled both Max and Brooke into a large group embrace however he made do with just hugging Max as she went over to him.

"Holy shit Maximus Power, that is awesome! Honestly, I'm happy for you guys! When I get out of here, we are totally going to celebrate. Be careful though, I am pretty wild when I get going at a party" he laughed. Whilst Max was surprised by this reaction, she was overcome by his positivity and almost found herself tearing up with joy, having dreaded this moment for a while. Brooke had a huge smile on her face.

"So am I Max and we actually have something to tell you as well. Not to ruin the moment and sound like I'm trying to like compete with you or something but me and Warren like eachother too. I know things were going well with Daniel but he found someone else and well…I had a crush on Warren for ages as I think you know by my overacting jealousy" she beamed. Max felt so happy at that moment. She glanced over and saw a giant smile on Warren's face confirming Brooke's claim. Max proceeded to get up and once again found herself hugging Brooke however this time happier than before.

"Oh my God that is amazing, I am so happy for you guys. I've been thinking this for a while now but I know it's true now. Everything is getting better and we are all moving on from this I know it" she exclaimed. The trio spent the next half hour or so talking about everything from double dates to playing bumper cars in wheel chairs, much to Warren's excitement.

After a long while of talking and laughing, probably causing a huge disturbance for the other patients, Max turned around to see Joyce walking up to her. Her face had a seemingly surprised look on it. Max stood up and walked over to Chloe's mother,

"Hey Joyce, is everything okay?" she asked. Joyce was out of breath and seemed as if she had speed walked over to where Max was. Max expected some news about David or maybe Chloe storming off again but what she said was far more scary and surprising…

"Max honey, everything is fine and David is fine too thank the Lord but honey, guess who just pulled up outside. It's your parents honey, they have come to visit early!"

 **Hey everyone, thanks again for the support and I just wanted to clarify that Max does not hate her parents, she is just scared of their reactions and what they might do.**


	19. Chapter NINETEEN: Tension Building!

**Chapter NINETEEN: Tension building!**

 **Hey everyone! I am really sorry but this is a real short chapter as I have to go straight out after uploading this HOWEVER, I will make up for this with a full chapter TOMORROW evening :D Thanks so much all!**

Scared.

Anxious.

Conflicted!

Maxine Caulfield felt all of those emotions as she nearly knocked a poor doctor to the ground as she practically sprinted to her girlfriend. She didn't know what to think right now…

 _Holy shit, what are they going to say when they find out about Chloe…please God, don't let my mom freak out!_

Her mind was screaming at her, making her feel even more intense. Max did miss her parents and really wanted to see them but this didn't ease her worried at all. Her parents, Ryan and Venessa Caulfield, hadn't seen Chloe for years and it would surely be a shock to them to find out they were dating. Max was pretty sure her father would be more than thrilled but it was her mom she was worried about. Venessa had…issues in the past when it came to being open about things like sexuality, she wasn't homophobic just slow to embrace new developments. She also had a tendency to freak out, as Max had found out first hand several thousand times! That coupled with the fact she hadn't physically seen them since before the storm and she had refused to go back with them on the phone very recently probably means her mother isn't in the best of moods. She wasn't looking forward to this.

Max found Chloe sitting awkwardly on a bench near the tent where David was resting. The site of the blue goddess instantly gave Max confidence. Chloe's undeniable glow and beauty was like poetry to Max and she could read it all day and night. She rushed up to her and was instantly greeted by a hug and a generous smooch. Max decided to play it cool before telling her about her parents,

"Wowsers, what's got you in such a good mood?" she asked shyly. Chloe responded initially by twirling Max as if they were dancing and then once again planting a firm kiss on the hipsters cheek.

"Well if you insist on speaking instead of kissing, I'll tell you Caulfield" she proclaimed. Chloe then sat down on the bench and invited Max to sit in her lap, Max did so, fully aware people were probably starring. Now, sitting in the lap of her beautiful girlfriend, Max listened closely, eager to hear some good news.

"So…" Chloe began,

"It turns out my step-douche isn't much of a douche after all. I wouldn't exactly call him a saint either but maybe I was a little hard on him and don't you dare say I told you so or I swear to god I'll kick your bony little ass back to Seattle" she joked, kissing Max's neck passionately. Max smiled and returned the kiss. They sat there for a few minutes and made small talk, mostly about Max subtle, and not to subtlety, telling Chloe she was totally right about David. It was only when Max's phone buzzed that she decided to tell Chloe about her parents.

"Woah, wait a second. Your parents? Like Ryan and Venessa Caulfield. Those parents?" she asked, surprised. Max nodded meekly and got to her feet and began to lead Chloe out of the tent and explained whilst they walked.

"Yeah, Joyce told me they were here early. Look you know my mom, you know how she can get a little…angry at times. She doesn't know about us yet and she's bound to say something she totally doesn't mean so….you know, don't get in her face or rage out or anything" Max pleaded. Chloe rolled her eyes and made a childish sound as she grabbed Max's hand in hers and swung them like they were children at a play park.

"Yeah I know the drill Max, you've only told me a hundred times. I'm not going to go full out Chloe on your mom unless she hurts my Max and then…bitch goes down" laughed Chloe, once again forming a mock karate pose. Max laughed a little, gladly accepting Chloe's attempt at defusing the tension.

"You know this time I will ignore the fact you called my mom a bitch just now only because you're such a dork and I love it" laughed Max.

The duo had only walked a few more yards before the unmistakeable sight of Max's parents came into view. Mx and Chloe smiled at eachother one last time and with a final kiss, they stepped into the unknown. Ready and willing to do whatever it took to stay together, no matter what!


	20. Chapter TWENTY: Together we will stand

**Chapter TWENTY: Together we will stand…**

 **WOW! Twenty chapters. I can't believe we came this far! This in an extra-long chapter to say thank you to everyone who is still reading. This chapter is mainly focussed in speech as you will find out but please enjoy…Chapter Twenty!**

Who are we without out parents? Some say we would be aimless shells of our formers elves, doomed to roam the Earth without the comfort and loving embrace of those who gave us our life. Others, such as Chloe Price, would say the your never truly the same after the loss of a parent and you could spend the whole of your life wondering why the fuck it was them and not you. That was until she met Max Caulfield again and now, Chloe though that she could finally start to move on but never forget the parent she lost and hope to God she doesn't mess it up again and let him down. That is what she reminded herself of as Ryan and Venessa Caulfield came into view. The parents of her girlfriend were literally right in front of her. And she was worried as fuck. She promised she would try not to mess this up for Max and she was planning to stick to that promise. She hoped…

Max didn't know what to feel initially. The two people staring right at her were her parents. She hadn't seen them in so long, it felt like years. Her father's signature brown hair and matching beard was a happy sight indeed for Max and filled her body with a warm sensation. She remembered when she was really young and how his beard used to tickle her when she hugged him. It was a monument to his kind nature. Then there was her mother. Max was so fond of her and often found herself wishing she was in her life more. She had the physique of a high-end business-women, a stern and uncompromising glare that often made Max feel uneasy during an argument. That was probably what she was going for. It was true that Venessa Caulfield sometimes had an issue being open minded but she would accept anything given time. The first thing Max saw of her mother that day was the look of absolute happiness and relief when they locked eyes, followed by her hand covering wide-open mouth. Before anybody could say anything, Max rushed over to her parents and gave them both a huge hug. The sound of her mother's happy sobbing giving her some assurance that things might go well.

Not too long after, Joyce arrived and they all went over to the Price household. Despite a few remarks from Venessa about the house's condition, which still wasn't great, everything went well for the first hour…. that was until lunch.

They had all decided on a rather light lunch and put a bunch of chairs together, including the couch, in the living room so everyone could sit down. The room was quite until the food was bought out. Then Max's father was the first one to speak.

"Well…I can't believe it took us this long to come and see you Max. I am so sorry darling but me and your mother and so glad your safe and you as well Chloe of course. It's great to see you again by the way after all these years" he spoke with a very soft voice and Chloe could tell they meant it when they apologised to Max. Before Chloe could say anything back to Ryan, Venessa decided it was her turn.

"Yeah, it is honestly great to see you Chloe. I must say you do look…a little different since we last saw you", unlike Ryan, Venessa spoke with a harder tone but certainly not one that seemed angry or irritated. Chloe smiled at them both but Max could sense there was a little awkwardness in her gaze, even more so when she spoke.  
"Yeah, allot of shit happens in 5 years" she said with a joking tone. Joyce gave her daughter a stare that basically said 'stop the swearing'. Chloe instead decided to follow up on her original response,  
"Sorry, it is great to see you both too it's been a long damn time" she proclaimed.

There was another long silence following this. Max had begun to feel anxious at this point, she was worried about what would happen when the subject about Max moving to Seattle would come up. She looked over at Chloe and smiled, she could tell Chloe was thinking the same thing as she was. Max had promised several times over the recent week that no matter what she would never leave her again. Max knew that she would never break this promise to Chloe, even if it meant getting into an intense argument with her parents. Max began to relax and reassure herself, _calm down Max the subject probably won't even come up, we will all have a nice meal together and everything will be…  
_ "Max honey, we would like to talk about Seattle" came the unmistakable sound of her mother's voice, as if she literally read her mind. The room suddenly became allot more tense. Ryan shifted uncomfortably in his seat and Joyce bit her lip. The first thing Max did was look directly over to her girlfriend. Chloe's gaze was now transfixed on Max's mom. Max couldn't tell if it was rage, horror or sadness. It was probably a mix of all three. She had left Chloe once before all those years ago, abandoned her when she was going through the absolute worst moment in her life and if there was one thing that scared Chloe Price half to death was the thought of Max doing it all over again. She had already lost her dad, her crush and everything that was important to her and she wasn't about to lose another. It was this thought process that compelled her to speak first.  
"Wait, what do you mean Seattle? I thought Max told you she was staying here" she proclaimed, a clear tone of anger rising in her voice. Joyce put a hand on Chloe's knee to calm her daughter down only to have it brushed off.  
"Excuse me Chloe, sorry to put a dampener on the evening but this must be discussed. I care about Maxine and it's clear you do too but we want Max to be safe and with everything that is going on in Arcadia Bay, we think it would be so much better for her if she moved back with us. Only for a little why while she goes to see a councillor and we get her enrolled at another school after she has healed. Then we'll be happy for her to…" Venessa was suddenly interrupted by Chloe's sudden rise to her feet. Her fists now clenched, Chloe stared daggers at Venessa.  
"This is bullshit! Max won't leave me again because of you. he belongs here with me where I can protect her. What, do you think I can't fucking do that?" she asked, nearly shouting.

Venessa was clearly taken by surprise at this outburst, as was everyone else in the room. Max had her head in her hands and Ryan was looking solemnly at the floor. It was Joyce's turn to get up and try to calm her daughter down for the second time.  
"Chloe! This language is unacceptable. Venessa is clearly just looking out for Max and we all need to bear that in mind and shouting and cussing is not going to help anyone" insisted Joyce however this attempt seemed to fall on deaf ears as Chloe kept her aggressive stance and Venessa seemed to return this act of aggression with her own piercing stare. Suddenly, Venessa Caulfield struck back with a voice of thunder as she was determined to get her point across.  
"Now listen here, you have no right to tell us how to protect OUR daughter. How dare you bring up the past? Now look, what we want is to do the best by our daughter and if that means moving her back to Seattle whether you want her to or not then I'll be dammed if I let you of all people stop that. Who do you think you are anyway? Thinking you can protect our daughter better than us…."  
"I'm her FUCKING girlfriend, bitch". And that was it! It was out in the open. Just like that.

Once again the room was in total silence and even Chloe seemed to realise how far she just went. Joyce sat back down quietly, as did Chloe. Ryan looked over to Max who was not looking at everyone with clear tears in her eyes.

Venessa stood up.

Max looked up her mother and was met with a glare of utter shock. How could things go so wrong after they were going so right? Why right now and why like this? So many questions were going through Max's head but she knew deep down that Chloe was right, they were going to stay together no matter what. Max readied herself for her mother's wrath.  
"Did you just say…girlfriend" uttered Venessa in a hushed tone. Before any more unpleasantries could be said, Ryan also stood up and took his wife by her shoulders and once again spoke in his signature soft tone.  
"Honey, maybe this isn't the best time to…"  
"Yeah, Chloe's my girlfriend" came the surprising voice of Max. "And I love her".

Venessa was now staring at her daughter and Max decided, rather than let this break them apart, to speak again and explain.  
"I know it's a surprise to you guys and I know you want me to be safe but I am here, with Joyce and Chloe. I love you both so much but I am 18 now, I have to start making my own choice and mom, regardless of what you think of her, Chloe is my girlfriend and I love her so much. I guess I always have really. Please don't hate me or say anything bad but I am staying here with Chloe!" proclaimed the once shy hipster. Chloe, who now had tears of her own, walked over to Max and bought her into an embrace. There was silence for the third time that night.

Max looked at both her parents.

There was a hint of a smile in Ryan's face but Max could tell he was still uneasy. He wanted Max safe too and probably agreed with Venessa but he also knew that Max was old enough now to make her own mind up. Venessa, on the other hand, was still on battle-ready mode.  
"Well…. Maxine. I have to say I am surprised at you. I know I haven't got the best of open mind's out there but…are you sure? With her too…" and that was all it took to send Chloe back into rage mode.  
"What the fuck do you mean by that?" shouted Chloe.  
"Well look at you. I mean I get that times change but when we last saw you, you were a great influence on Maxine but now…I am not sure that is the case anymore. Maxine needs someone to guide her in her life, make sure she is making the right choices and give her the career push she needs not…well…you" she explained. Chloe's fists were now clenched and she was read with anger. Even Max, who loved her mother more than life itself, was on the verge of full on blowing up at her. However, it was the calming southern voice of Joyce that ended up being heard first and everyone was listening with anticipation of what would happen next.  
"Now look here Venessa, you have absolutely no right to judge Chloe like that. You have no idea what that girl went through after William died. Now I am not saying it was your fault for Max moving away and neither is Chloe but you have to realise something. Those two have been allot together and as you can very well see, they are obviously protecting eachother. Max is a damn good woman now Venessa, and I can promise you that although she may seem to be a little…over the top sometimes, I trust my daughter to take care of Max and you can be damn sure I will be there to make sure that she does! Now… I think we need to have a chat about this on our own, don't you agree?"

Whether it was the inspiring speech by Joyce or the mention of William, Venessa closed her eyes briefly and calmed herself down. Max held Chloe in her arms and gently kissed her on her beanie-less head in order to also calm her down. After ensuring that Chloe wouldn't just reach for her mother there and then, Max gently walked over to her mother.  
"Mom…I love Chloe and I really want you to understand that. I love you as well but I won't let anyone take me away from her. I will never leave her again and that is a promise!" she trembled. Venessa simply looked at her daughter and then at the floor without saying anything. Everything was beginning to calm down now and for that, Max was glad. Tears were now streaming down her face as the stress of everything that had happened had finally reached their limit. Chloe was also beginning to cry now although she would not allow Venessa to see it as if not to show weakness. Ryan carefully nodded and spoke up,  
"I think Joyce is right, we all need a moment. Girls, could you maybe give us a moment while we all talk about this?" he asked gently. Max nodded and with a final look at her mother, her and Chloe left the room.

As they slowly walked upstairs, Chloe and Max met eachothers gaze. Chloe smiled at her girlfriend in an attempt to remain strong however, once they reached the top of the stairs, she grabbed Max and broke down whilst digging her face into Max's neck. Through the intense sobbing from both sides, Max could hear the muffled voice of Chloe asking a question that meant so much to both of them.

"Max…p..promise me you won't leave me" she asked meekly. Max grinned slightly and looked directly into her eyes with a confidence she had only recently discovered.

"Chloe Price, not even another tornado would make me leave you again. I will always be here for you. Always…."


	21. Chapter TWENTY-ONE: Alone we will fall!

**Chapter TWENTY-ONE: Alone we will fall!**

 **Sorry for the late upload, had such a busy few days.**

' _What a fucking day!'_ thought Max as she sat on the bed with Chloe. The day started off so well but then like all the good things in her life, it quickly descended. A thousand questions burned through Max's mind as she glanced down at the ground;

' _What's going to happen now?'_

' _What are they talking about down there?'_

' _Is my mom ever going to accept Chloe?'_

' _Are they going to force me to go with them?'_

' _ **FUCK THAT'**_

Max was beginning to internally freak out. Her own mother had said some horrible things and it hurt like hell. Max had always loved her mother more than life itself and they had always been close but now…could they really come back from this? Max glanced over to Chloe who was now sitting at the very end of the bed and was literally shacking. Max didn't know if was fear or anger. She was pretty scared to find out. She decided that the best thing to do was to be remain strong for Chloe and give her support. Moving over to Chloe, Max put a soothing hand on her girlfriend's shoulder and this gained a smiling glare from Chloe. Max could still tell she was really upset, however.

"Hey Max…I just wanted to say I'm sorry for freaking out back there, it's just when your mom said you were leaving me again I…" Chloe was cut of by the sudden arrival of Max's lips on hers. Mas knew this trick, whenever Chloe was angry or upset, she would simply give her a small peck on the lips and stroke her cheek softly. It made Chloe feel warm inside and more importantly, it made her feel loved and wanted. Max was now sitting right beside Chloe and their arms were now around eachother, as if as to support eachother. Max perked up and once again wore a reassuring smile.

"It's going to be okay Chloe, I promise. I am never leaving you and the worst thing we can do right now is be alone and that will never happen. I'll be here forever, you might even get sick of me eventually" she chuckled, burying her head in Chloe's neck playfully.

"There is literally zero chance of that happening Maxi-pad. I'll never get sick of you and I promise that soon I will show you how much you mean to me. I can't say what yet but just…make sure you're free Sunday okay? Please…just make sure" she insisted. This sudden invitation made Max suspicious but happy at the same time. Chloe Price was not the most 'romantic' of people and would probably rather spend her time in a punk rock concert rather than a fancy restaurant. Despite the bleak events that just unfolded, Max decided to try and lighten the mood somewhat,

"Okay…I don't what you're up to but I'll fold. Just out of curiosity though, what happens if I don't go? What if I want you to 'convince' me" she asked playfully. That ever famous, sometimes infamous, childish grin appeared on Chloe's face once more. Initially, Max was glad that the tension had been dissolved a little bit but that gratitude was soon turned into shock as the tickling power of Chloe's hands came down upon her, fully loaded. In that moment, Max put aside all of her insecurities when it came to intimacy, thanks to Jeffershit, and decided to laugh to hell instead.

The delicate silence of the room had been replaced by the sound of frantic laughing by both Max and Chloe. Since she first met her, Chloe had always turned to tickling Max whenever she felt like annoying the geek hipster and it often just irritated the shit out of her however, at this point in time, Max was super glad as it meant less time worrying about her parents and more time playing around and acting like they were kids again, re-enacting those precious years when they were much younger. Max hoped this would go one forever and all would be good eventually with her parents. She practically begged for it!

The living room was, at first, encased in an agonising silence. Everyone knew what was said and what needed to be said yet no one in the room seemed to want to take that responsibility. Joyce looked around the room. Venessa seemed to be making an odd facial expression, similar to the face David or Chloe pulled after they had realised they may have said something wrong.

Joyce sighed out loud.

All she ever wanted was to have a family. Fate was not on her side with this one. First William was taken, then Chloe began a rebellious faze that still seemed to be lingering. On top of that, Chloe and her step-father had refused to make any progress with eachother and settled on constant arguments instead. Now, it appeared that her dreams for Chloe to have someone who made her happy to be constantly with her was threatened. Joyce closed her eyes and thought very carefully about what she said next. It took her a few minutes to actually come up with something.

"Right. I think we all have had time to calm ourselves down. Now, before we get into anything I would like to say something. Chloe is my daughter and Max is yours…" she began, directing her speech at Venessa who was still looking at her feet.  
"…they are different people but does that mean they can't be in love. I have known Max for a long time and she is nothing short than an amazing woman and she is perfectly capable of making her own choices in life. I reminded Chloe of that not long ago. I know with everything going on, it may seem like taking Max with you is a good idea and this wreck of a house isn't making things any better but as I said, Max is old enough to make her own choices now and you have to let her do that Venessa. Either way, it seems to me like it would take a damn herd of bulls to separate those two girls so I ask you Venessa, would you rather ruin your relationship with your daughter or show her that you trust her to make her own destiny?" she concluded. The question seemed to drift around in the air for a while before the uplifting sound of laughter came from upstairs. Joyce, Ryan and Venessa all looked up and everyone smiled…including Venessa.

It has often been said that the sound of laughter can heal the gravest of wounds and in his case, it seemed to do the trick. The laughter emanating from Chloe's room seemed to put everything right in that one instant. The dilapidated and decaying house seemed like a palace at that moment and the destruction that lay around them seemed to go away. Ryan Caulfield bore a wide grin as he placed his hands on his wife's. Venessa turned to him with tears in her eyes.

"Honey, I think Joyce is right. I want my daughter home with us more than anything but our Max is not a child anymore. She can call us every day, on the hour, but I think her place is here with Chloe, Joyce and David. We can even visit every weekend. Well darlin'…what do you say?" he asked in such a calming way. Venessa seemed to briefly consider it before smiling at placing a kiss on her husband's soft cheek before turning back to Joyce who herself seemed to be tearing up.

"Oh Joyce, I have been such a fool. You are right, Max is grown up and we…I have to accept it. I am sorry about what I said to Chloe and I want to make it up to you somehow but right now, I think it is best if Max stays with you" she stated, emotionally. There still seemed to be a hint of reluctance in her voice but it was definitely a step forward. Joyce and Venessa both got up, seeming at the exact same time, and hugged eachother with Ryan smiling warmly in the background.

 **Thanks for reading, I know this was a slow chapter and not much happened in it but I wanted to show that things weren't all bleak and grey. Thanks for reading and see you next week!**


	22. Chapter TWENTY-TWO: Forgiveness !

**Chapter TWENTY-TWO: Forgiveness (KATE: Part II)**

 **The second part of the special chapters focussed on Kate Marsh with her own storyline that will link with the main one. Thanks again for the support and please enjoy :D**

Was this a bad idea?

Will she just get hurt again like last time?

A thousand and one questions raced their way through the mind of Kate Marsh as she sat on the slightly uncomfortable wooden bench. Throughout her life, Kate had been taught to forgive and never hold grudges to anyone regardless of what they may have done. It was this belief that prompted Kate into arranging a meeting with Victoria Chase, the girl who had nearly caused her to take her own life. Kate had gotten Victoria's number from Dana back at the rescue centre and had spent literally hours trying to figure out what to say to her. Fortunately, Alyssa had been kind enough to put aside her own dislike of the former 'Queen of Blackwell' and give Kate some incredible advice.

"Just be yourself Kate and don't let Victoria intimidate you. If she starts acting like a bully again then get out of there. Oh, and definitely bring up the past! Get it out of the way and that way you can move on and maybe you can even be friends one day" the purple-haired girl explained. Kate thought for a while of what she had meant by 'be yourself' around Victoria and spent longer thinking of how she could act like herself around someone who had tormented her for so long. Kate put these thoughts to the back of her mind and focussed on her own will to forgive. Victoria had lost her best friends and from what Max had said, she wasn't exactly stable because of it.

It was Victoria who suggest they meet outside of Arcadia Bay and Kate very much agreed with her as the destruction and chaos would not make for a great backdrop for the talk they were about to have. They had settles on meeting in a little picnic area, overlooking a large green field that Victoria had been too when she was younger. It was surprising to Kate that Victoria would choose somewhere so beautiful and entrancing. The trees swayed peacefully and the sun shined bright as the golden sun rays made the whole area just so incredible to look at. It was a huge juxtaposition to the carnage that was situated only a few miles away. A small bunny rabbit hopped by and stopped for one single second to glance at the Christian girl who couldn't help but smile sweetly back. She loved bunnies and the small innocent creature in front of her, reminded her of a simple time when all was happy in her life and nothing could go wrong. Kate was bought out of her trance as the sound of an approaching vehicle caused the rabbit to run away. Kate looked behind her and stood up, preparing herself for the time ahead, as Victoria Chase got out of the car.

The car Victoria had arrived in looked rich and very pretty. It was a Bentley, Kate knew that, and a pretty recent model by the looks of it. Even the colour was beautiful, a nice dark red that made it look like someone famous drove it. There was someone else in the driver's seat and Kate immediately identified the driver as Victoria's mother. Kate knew almost nothing about Victoria's mother, other than she was influential in the art world and, together with her husband, owned a gallery called 'The Chase Space' in Chicago. It was pretty famous.

After a quite word, the car began to drive away and Kate noticed Victoria's mother give her daughter a glare the seemed almost…angry or disappointed. The car eventually fully pulled away and all that was left was the two girls. It had all been boiling down to this moment ever since that fateful Vortex Club party long ago. Kate felt herself tense slightly as she gazed at Victoria who seemed to be staring at the swaying trees. She decided to be the first to speak, wanting mostly to get rid of the unbearable silence.

"Hi…Victoria" she began, trying to sound sweet and not as scared as she was.  
"Shall we…take a seat?" she asked, pointing towards the bench she had been sitting on. Victoria simply nodded and went to sit on the bench, being careful to avoid looking directly at Kate as she did so.

Kate followed Victoria and decided to sit on the opposite side of the old picnic bench. Whilst she was ready to ty and work things out with her, she wasn't entirely comfortable with sitting that close to her yet.

Yet again, the silence engulfed the area, with only the singing of the birds to be heard. Neither girl knew what to say and were at a horrible stalemate. Kate looked over to Victoria. She was wearing similar clothes to when they last saw eachother but this time it looked…off. The obvious cashmere that was signature to the rich girl seemed un-neat and was very creased in allot of areas. Victoria's hair was also messy and seemed much darker than before and maybe even very slightly greasy. It was obvious to Kate that the girl in front of her was no longer the big bad bully of Blackwell Academy but someone who was…vulnerable. Kate sighed as she looked at Victoria who still hadn't looked directly at Kate the entire time and who's eyes seemed red and slightly puffed up.

Finally, after what seemed like ten whole minutes of pure silence, Victoria broke the silence.

"This place…is beautiful isn't it? The last time I was here, I was with my dad and he showed me how to use his camera for the first time. I fell in love with it then and there." Her voice seemed rough and scratchy as if she had been shouting for some time before they had met. Kate couldn't help but smile at the rather lovely story she was just told. This surprised her as it was probably the first time she had smiled about something Victoria had done. Kate looked up to Victoria,

"That was a lovely story Victoria. Those were simpler and better days" she claimed.  
"Yeah, they were" replied Victoria who still couldn't look at Kate.

Kate began to nervously scratch at the wooden table. This was so scary to her and she didn't know what to say to the girl in front of her. Ever since the Vortex Club party, Kate had had some negative thoughts about Victoria and at the time she wasn't really ashamed and felt they were justified but right now, she was ashamed of the bad thoughts just as she knew Victoria was ashamed of what she had done.

"Victoria, would you please look at me?" she asked, a hint of sadness in her voice. Victoria seemed to shift slightly but still didn't look at Kate. It was obvious that she was going through something worse than Kate had imagined and that Max was right to be worried about her. Max had also told Kate that Victoria broke down to her and actually cried in regret of what she had done. Kate almost didn't believe this at first but now it was clear that Max was telling the truth and there was something deeply wrong with Victoria Chase. By this point, Kate was nearly leaning over the table at Victoria.

"Victoria! Please, look at me! We need to sort this out right now. We both know what you did but we can't let it go on. We can move on from this Victoria but you need to just look at me" she pleaded. A tear was no visibly running down Victoria's cheek and she didn't even try to wipe it away. Kate was also trying to hold back the tears.

"It's all my fault…" whispered Victoria.  
"My fault. No one else's. Mine. I was the reason you were on the roof and I nearly KILLED you Kate and I know that if you did I would not be able to live with it. I posted that video of you knowing it would hurt you. Why? Because I was jealous that you were popular because of you and you didn't have to over compensate for it. I nearly KILLED you and yet you are the one who wants to move on. You haven't done anything but be nice and sweet and kind but I am the big bitchy bully who everyone should hate and I am a coward for it. Kate, don't you see? I don't want your damn forgiveness because I can never get it and I can never deserve it. I almost killed you and I did kill…" she stopped, almost mortified about she was going to say. Kate, who's tears had escaped their prison, knew what Victoria was going to say but if there was one thing she was going to, she was not going to let her say their names.

Kate got up and almost rushed over to Victoria and knelt in front of her. It was now that they finally locked eyes and in that moment, all the bad things Victoria had done had vanished in the eyes of Kate Marsh. All those hateful and deplorable acts were now deeply rooted in Kate's mind, instead replaced by the image of someone who was helpless and struggling. Kate may never forget what Victoria had done but she will forgive her and that was a promise she was sure she would keep. Victoria practically fell into Kate's arms and was now crying fiercely.

"T…thank you Kate. Thank you so much. I'm going t…to change I promise. I am g…going to be friends with Max from now on and I promise I will n…never bully you or anyone again. Thank you, Kate Marsh. Thank you so much!" she exclaimed. Kate let out a small laugh, not out of maliciousness but out of pure happiness. Could Victoria and Kate actually be friends from now on? Could they actually move on from what happened? At that point, Kate knew they could and would!

"I do forgive you Victoria. We can be friends and everything will be okay from here on out. We are still meeting with Max and everyone from Blackwell in a few days remember. This is the start of something Victoria, something amazing and right and I am so happy about it" beamed Kate!  
"So am I Kate…so am I" smiled Victoria.

Kate was right, it was indeed the start of something. The start of a life that could only get better for both Kate Marsh and Victoria Chase. It was the start of something else too…something that both girls would soon realise. Something happy and unexpected.

 **So…I think allot of you know where this is probably going and I am so happy to include it in my fanfic. I love writing these specials about Kate as she is a fantastic character. I also have written Victoria as someone who wants to change and reform herself after the ad events in her life. I hope you all enjoy her characterisation!**


	23. Chapter TWENTY-THREE: Homecoming

**Chapter TWENTY-THREE: Homecoming**

 **This chapter included some romantic fluff between Max and Chloe, hell yes, and allot to do with David too. Hope you enjoy!**

Today was going to a good day!

Both Max and Chloe were excited. Not only was today the day David was coming home but also, later in the afternoon, they were going to meet Kate and Victoria for a nice afternoon out. It was sad that Warren and Brooke couldn't join them but Warren was still being looked after by the doctors and Brooke insisted she would stay by his side, which Max thought was adorable. It was nice that Warren found someone right for him and it was also nice for Brooke to stop being jealous all the time. Max had promised they would all visit Warren before they went out properly so the 'Blackwell Five' could all be together!

The day had started out pretty awkward though. After the 'stressful' argument the previous day, no one really knew what to say when they all met up again. Max's mother had made it a point to apologise to Chloe as soon as she could and although Chloe claimed she forgave her, Max could tell her girlfriend was still a little hesitant. After all, Max's mother did try and separate the two of them and that was enough to initiate the wrath of Chloe. It wasn't fun. The surprise news that David was ready to come home had made things allot easier and everyone actually talked they were all a family again. This made Max especially happy as for a long time since the storm, she believed all she did was tear families apart by her decision to sacrifice Arcadia Bay but this kind of reconciliation proved to her that perhaps things could get better and sooner than she ever thought!

Joyce had left in Chloe's truck to pick up her husband and Venessa had gone with her, partly to help Joyce with steadying David but also to give Chloe some space to fully forgive her.

For about twenty minutes after Joyce and Venessa had left, Max and Chloe prepared a little food for everyone when they were all together. Whilst Max's dad was busy cleaning the place a little, Max finally decided it was her chance to talk to Chloe by herself. The punk had gone upstairs to get some things frm her room a few minutes prior and Max carefully put down the chips she was carrying and made her way up the stairs to Chloe's room. When she entered, Chloe was sitting on her bed looking at something that was obscured by the quilt. The opening f the door and the subsequent entering of Max startles Chloe and she quickly fully hid the object under the covers before her girlfriend could see it.

"Jesus Caulfield, d…don't you knock anymore?" she nervously asked.

Max frowned slightly. It wasn't like Chloe to keep anything from her, let alone a secret. Max nervously walked closer to her girlfriend who had now adopted a nervous smile. Max then sat on the bed by her girlfriend.

"Uh…what was that Chloe? Are you…hiding something from me?" she quizzed, sounding more nervous that Chloe did. It wasn't common that Max felt paranoid or nervous when being around Chloe but ever since the argument with her parents, she had been more than a little worried about everything. Even the little things.

"What? Of course not hippie, actually I think you'll find it's a surprise but you won't finding out until Sunday. Cool?" she asked. Chloe was doing absolutely everything she could to hide the fear in her voice. The fear of Max finding out what she was hiding but also the fear of what she was actually hiding. During their visit to Max's friend the other day, Chloe had told her step-father about her intention to propose to Max. Despite the questioning of the short time she and Max had been together, David was surprisingly cool with it and even openly supportive about the whole thing. It seemed, to Chloe absolute shock, the danger of the storm and nearly losing his family had made David change his ways. He actually wanted to be a step-father and not a step-douche! Something Chloe was actually cool with. More than cool.

David had also given Chloe something that caused her to tear up.

He had given her a ring to give to Max!

He had explained how it was given to him by his late grandmother years ago when he joined the army as to give him luck in his service. She had died not long after and the soldier treasured it and took it everywhere he went no matter what! He gave it to Chloe and asked that she take good care of it and Max. After a huge hug, she had hugely thanked him. Sometimes since then, when no one was around, Chloe would have small weeping sessions. Not out of sadness but surprise and happiness that she actually…had a family again. She would never admit she would cry to anyone. She was still a punk on the outside.

There was NO WAY David would ever replace her father but she was warming to him massively and even though oh him as a parent. She maybe, kind of, slightly…loved him as a parent.

Max decided to leave the subject as she assured herself that Chloe would never hurt her or keep anything that was serious from her. She was further reassured by the warm arrival of Chloe's lips on her own. They soon found themselves embracing a barrage of kisses, smooches and cuddles. Max always felt loved with Chloe around and Chloe definitely felt the same. That was the perk of being best friends as well as lovers. After what seemed like an hour of kissing and hugging, they both sat up and Max fell into her girlfriend's arms and they locked eyes. Chloe's beautifully blue eyes were so deep and transfixing. Max loved that about the punk, she was beautiful all over her body no matter what and they loved eachother no matter what.

"You know I hella love you Max Caulfield. I may have had flings with boys and…Rachel was something more but…I have never loved anyone more than you and I never will. You're my partner in time and crime Mad Max and I love you so much and I promise I am going to show you how much you mean to me. Just you wait hipster" she promised, smiling down at the bundle of beauty that was Max Caulfield.

"I love you too Chloe, no matter what. You are literally my soul mate and nothing will change how much I love you" Max stated.  
"Even if I…shave of your eyebrows when your asleep" laughed Chloe. Max followed up this comment by playfully slapping Chloe on the shoulder.

"If you do that Chloe I will get my revenge and it will be _cruel"_ Max put on an evil accent with the last word. Chloe defiantly folded her arms and gave her girlfriend a look that basically said 'what are you going to do'. Max stood up and thought for a second before coming up with the perfect revenge.

"I will tell Joyce to never cook you pancakes or bacon again" she proclaimed with a sinister laugh.

Chloe looked intensely shocked at her girlfriend before pouting and holding her hand to her heart as if she had been shot. Max laughed at this playful action.

"You really know how to hurt a girl Caulfield. You actually got me hella scared" she laughed in response.

Suddenly there was a knock at the door and Ryan Caulfield entered.

"Hey girls, just wanted to let you know your mothers are pulling up with David" he smiled. It was obvious that he still felt a little awkward die to the previous argument. Chloe stood up and joined her girlfriend as they walked down the stairs to greet everyone, making sure to hid the ring beforehand.

The front door slowly opened as Venessa emerged with Joyce following close behind with David leaning against his wife. He looked allot better since they last saw him but a few cuts and bruises were still visible on his head and the big white bandage was still neatly wrapped around his head. It was a bit of a shock to Max and Chloe, seeing David like that. They were so used to seeing the big man tower over everyone and seem like he is the boss of them but right now he was the one leaning on Joyce and looked…vulnerable. Chloe slightly tightened her grip on Max's hand, a subtle way of showing her worry. Max felt the same. This was the man who saved her life in another timeline.

Joyce and David made their way slowly into the living room with David assuring his wife that he could make it himself. Typical David Madsen, still trying to put on a show that he is a strong and stable person even at his most vulnerable. Kind of like his step-daughter really.

David was about to sit on the couch when he locked eyes with his step-daughter. Before the storm, the two of them would never really lock eyes except when staring daggers into eachother and arguing. Now, all was silent as the two looked at eachother. Neither Max, Joyce, Ryan or Venessa could tell who made the first move but before anyone knew it, Chloe and David were hugging and smiling. Joyce was taken aback but Max was super happy. They were healing and it felt so awesome! Chloe and her step-father broke from the hug and stood awkwardly for a little while before David broke the silence.

"Well Chloe, how have you been?" he asked, genuinely concerned.  
"I've been good. Great actually. Me and Max are like hella happy right now and it's…good to see you dude." She told him, still feeling slightly awkward. Once again, Max and Joyce stood pleasantly surprised by Chloe's open affection towards the man who she had pretty much despised for the past few years. Max was sure that this was the best David would get as far as open affection went.

"Yeah it's great to be back with you and Joyce. My family. And from what I am told, and Max here." David walked over to Max, still a little dizzy.

"Uhh…Max. I know we didn't have the…best of introductions…" he began, being careful not to mention the weed incident in front of Max's parents.  
"…but I am sorry and I am trying to be a better man. I realise now that there is no need to be a soldier anymore. So I would like to open my home…our home to you and as long as you carry on making Chloe as happy as she is right now then I am more than happy to allow you to stay here as long as you like. Maybe you could even convince Chloe to keep down the punk music and to stop calling me step-douche" he chuckled. Max was initially taken by surprise by this sudden show of kindness. David was truly trying to change.

"Wowsers. Thank you so much Mr. Madsen. I promise I won't be too much of a problem and I will try to be a good influence on Chloe" promised Max. David offered his hand to Max and she happily shook it. Venessa and Ryan took eachother by the hand, saddened by the fact that their little girl had made up her mind about staying with Chloe's family but also happy that she was going to be in a really good environment and despite their initial thoughts, she was definitely going to be more than okay.

Shortly after their emotional conversation, they all sat down and ate some food with David being careful not to overdo it and Joyce being by her husband's side all the while. After an hour of catching up and eating, Max received a text from Kate claiming she and Victoria were at the rescue centre. Max knew the two had met up recently and she was insanely glad they had met and worked things out although she was yet to receive the full details on the meeting. She quickly dusted some crumbs of herself and stood up.

"I'm sorry everyone but me and Chloe have to be going, we are meeting some friends from Blackwell but it was great to see you Mr Madsen and I promise mom and dad that I will see you guys before you go." She stated. Chloe got up and joined her girlfriend and took her by the hand. Ryan gestured to his daughter before she left,

"See you later girls and remember be careful out there. It is still dangerous with some of the ruins so be careful and make sure to text your mom every hour or so to make sure you're okay Max. Oh…and no drinking" ordered Ryan.

"Dad trust me we are not drinking. One of our friends is a Christian. We promise we won't be out too long" said Max. With that and a few final glances and goodbyes, Max and Chloe left for Chloe's truck to meet the others at the rescue centre.

As soon as the girls left, Joyce took David to the side and left Ryan and Venessa talking in the living room. Once they were out of sight, they kissed and cuddled eachother for the first time properly since before the storm.

"David, thank you so much for being good with Chloe. I actually feel like we're going to be a family again" beamed Joyce as she hugged her husband. David smiled and looked down at his wife before planting a kiss on her forehead.

"I promise I will make more of an effort with Chloe. Her and Max seem happy. Actually…I think soon they will be much happier than we could of hoped…"

 **Thanks so much for reading. As you can tell I really like David and I see how much he cares for his family but his methods before and during LIS were very bad but after the storm, I think he would want to become a better person. Thanks so much!**


	24. Chapter TWENTY-FOUR: That was awkward!

**Chapter TWENTY-FOUR: That was awkward!**

 **I am SO sorry for being super late, yet again my laptop was in need of repair! But I am back now and I hope you enjoy this next chapter!**

"Chloe Elizabeth Price, promise me you will NOT punch Victoria in the face" Max jokingly demanded. They were inside Chloe's truck and were about to pull up to the rescue centre when Chloe brought her hatred of the former queen bitch of Blackwell. Chloe had always hated the way Victoria acted even before she started bullying Max but as soon as the punk discovered that Victoria had been a bitch to Max, she nearly flipped her shit. Max had to constantly remind her girlfriend that Victoria actually wanted to change but just as she had been to David, Chloe was hugely hesitant.

"Aw but Max, I had my heart set on smashing her perfect nose into modern art" Chloe replied. Max chuckled at Chloe's aggressive response. Whilst the old Victoria kind of deserved such an act, Max knew that she actually wanted to change and had been through allot. Max hoped that Kate managed to soften Victoria up even more.

Time will tell.

"You're such a dork! And you know how important this is. I want us all to be friends or at the least nice to eachother. We all made it through that storm and not to mention all that shit before it. At least try to be civil, for me Chloe" she pleaded.

Chloe looked over to her girlfriend and her beauty instantly won her over. No matter what the situation was and how much she did not want to do it, the incredible glow of Maxine Caulfield would instantly turn her the other way and also, Chloe couldn't deny that Max was right about her step-father so she may as well give the bitch of Blackwell a chance.

"ugh fine Max but ONLY for you. You know I can't resist that sexy face of yours. Do I…get a reward for being nice today" she asked seductively. Max couldn't help but blush. Her and Chloe's love had recently extended into more physical activities and Max eventually learned to forget about what the creep Jefferson had done to her in the Dark Room and that had made her much happier to be with Chloe intimately.

Max gave Chloe a playful nod and whispered something in her ear. Instantly after she heard the words, Chloe began to blush and a large smile found its way onto her face.

"Holy shit Maxi-pad, you are confident today. I love it! You gotta deal babe, I promise to TRY and not rearrange Vicky's facial structure" Chloe laughed and so did Max.

The familiar site of Luke from the rescue centre opening the gates made both girls smile, for Max she was happy to see a familiar face and for Chloe, she found him kind of cute.

It was also a shame that Alyssa and Daniel and the others couldn't make it but they were mostly all with their families and Dana and Stella were actually abroad.

"I really hope this works" uttered Max under her breath as they entered the rescue centre to meet the others.

Victoria Chase was not a patient person. No matter what situation she was in, she hated waiting. She began to pace up and down, both because she was impatient and she was a tad nervous. Here she was, waiting for Max Caulfield and Chloe Price, waiting to visit some geek friend of Max's she hardly knew and she was waiting with Kate Marsh, the girl she almost indirectly killed not too long ago.

What the hell was she doing?

She didn't belong here!

She didn't deserve to be here!

"Hey Victoria, please relax. They'll be here soon and it will be okay I promise", the sweet and calming sounding voice of Kate bought her out of her internal quiz. Victoria glanced towards the girl now standing in front of her. Kate was wearing her famous church outfit and her hair was in her signature bun but something was…different about her. Ever since they had met recently and had a heart to heart talk, Victoria felt differently about the church girl. Her guilt over what happened turned into admiration for Kate and the admiration turned into…she would not admit it. Ever. EVER.

Victoria calmed herself down and nodded over to Kate. She sat down on the bench near the front gates of the rescue centre and Kate sat next to her and smiled at Victoria. The smile was full of care and warmth as always and as much as she tried to hide it, seeing the smile made Victoria smile in return and slightly blush. She hoped Kate hadn't noticed it. She did!

Kate Marsh marvelled at the beautiful weather that surrounded them. It was a very warm and calm day and a very small breeze made it even more surreal. It made the destruction and devastation of Arcadia Bay seem so far away. Kate took it as a sign that things were getting better for everyone who was still injured at the rescue centre, including Warren. When the storm was at it's worst, Kate's faith had been tested. Actually, it was tested with the events that happened before the storm however, whilst allot of people died because of the storm, many had also survived including Max who was her guardian angel. And then there was Victoria. The girl who had gone out of her way to ruin Kate's life had finally apologised and they seemed to be friends. After the intense talk they had, Kate felt closer to Victoria than ever before.

Closer than she ever thought she would be.

Kate hadn't felt particularly close to anyone romantically before. She was abstinent of course and that put allot of people off. She guessed nobody wanted to date a bible loving teenager who refused to drink and have sex. Yet with Victoria, her feelings were unclear.

Was she blushing because of her?

Did she actually…like the former big bully of Blackwell?

Did she like a…girl?

Kate had always been in full support of same sex relationships, even when some of her church friends were against it. She figured that God would want everyone to be happy, regardless of their sexual preference however, she never guessed she could fall for a girl herself, especially to VICTORIA CHASE. She was probably wrong, it had been a big change for Victoria becoming a friend rather than a bully so she was probably just in shock.

Probably.

"Uhh…Kate" whispered Victoria. Kate glanced over to her and found Victoria looking solemnly at the floor. Kate could tell she was worried about the day with everyone. She was so used to hanging out with the popular people and now she was about to spend the day with herself, Max and Chloe. It would surely be a huge change in her social circle and Kate could tell it was going to be hard for her, especially because the last two real friends of hers passed away because of the storm.

"Are you…okay Victoria" asked Kate quietly.  
"Yeah, yeah sure but I have to ask you…are you sure this is going to work? I mean…I'm on good terms with Maxine but with Chloe, I think she would probably punch me out as soon as she sees me. Not that I can blame her, I did treat her girlfriend like shit for so long" explained Victoria. Kate smiled once again and placed her hand on Victoria's knee. Now it was impossible for Victoria to hide her blushing. Kate had such a warm touch and it felt so calming even through Victoria's designer trousers. Her voice was even more warm and inviting,

"We've been through this. You are going to be fine and so will Chloe. Max has explained everything to her and I did say you don't have to be in the room when we see Brooke and Warren. Just be calm and I promise I will protect you if Chloe gets her range on"  
"You promise Kate?" asked Victoria whilst looking into Kate's eyes.  
"I promise Victoria" smiled Kate.

They had sat there for what seemed like an hour just looking into eachothers eyes. Neither could deny what they felt but they couldn't admit it. Not yet anyway. It was so new to both of them. They weren't even sure they felt that way yet. The silence became steadily more awkward until Victoria finally ended the silence.

"So…this is…awkward. I guess we should just…." She began, not sure how to end. Thankfully Kate managed to finish for her,

"We should just sit and wait for them, I guess?" she asked, mostly to herself. Victoria nodded in agreement and once again the silence had returned. It was during this silence Victoria truly had time to think about Kate Marsh. She thought about how she needed Kate to guide her in her redemption and how already she felt better about herself. She thought about how she should thank her for her forgiveness. She thought about her feelings….

Victoria needed to say something now or she probably would never get to say it. She looked at Kate and mentally prepared herself, hands at her sides and her fists were firmly gripped together as if to show how nervous she really was.

Now or never…

"Kate I uhh…. I need to tell you something and I know you'll p…probably find it weird or creepy especially f…from me of all people but I….I can't thank you enough for forgiving me and even though I have no right to your forgiveness after what I did…"  
"Victoria it's…"  
"No Kate, I need to say this now before I freak. I always tried to be the queen bee who stung anyone who got in my way and it's only now that I see I was wrong and it was because of you and Max that I saw this but you…you have made me feel so…different and I th…think I know why. Kate I…" 

"WHAT UP STICKY VIKCY!" came the shouting surprise from behind Kate and Victoria. It appeared that whilst Victoria had been opening up to Kate, they had both been too engulfed in the atmosphere of the moment to witness the arrival of Max and Chloe who had only just entered the rescue centre in Chloe's beat up truck and it was only the playful yelling of Chloe Price that alerted them both to them arriving.

Kate and Victoria looked at eachother initially then both looked away in unison. Neither of them knew what to say.

Victoria wanted to say something to Price. Something along the lines of, 'WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU!' but instead decided to stand up and march away as quickly as she could in the opposite direction.

"Victoria…wait!" shouted Kate but garnered no response from the feeling Victoria. Kate was now blushing and couldn't help but feel a burning sensation inside of her, it was more shock than anger. She wanted to know what Victoria was about to say.

She needed to know!

However, Kate knew she would have to give the girl some space.

Kate turned around to see Chloe and Max staring at her in utter confusion. Max smiled sheepishly and started to rub her arm. Chloe looked around, still extremely confused about what the hell just happened,

"Uhh…was it something I said…."

 **I know, there was some drama in this chapter and some fluff! Next chapter will be lighter hearted and will deal with everyone actually trying to be friends. Thanks so much for reading and being patient! You are all the reason why I love writing and you all Give so much support! THANKS SO MUCH!**


	25. Chapter TWENTY-FIVE: Punk and the queen!

**Chapter TWENTY-FIVE: The punk and the queen.**

 **Wow…25 chapters and I am still so thankful to you all! This chapter is mostly speech and some drama too but still, hope you enjoy!**

"How the hell was I supposed to know you two were…" Chloe Price stopped in mid-sentence when she felt the soft touch of her girlfriend's hand on her shoulder. Chloe couldn't tell if it was supposed to comfort her or tell her it was useless to explain herself.

Only seconds earlier, Chloe had not-so-subtlety interrupted an intense conversation between Kate Marsh and Victoria Chase of all people. It was only when the latter had stormed off and she was met with the surprisingly red and slightly angry face of Kate than it finally dawned on her that she probably should have kept her big trap shut. Ever since then, Chloe had tried to explain her actions to the still shocked Kate and...it wasn't going too well!

"Oh Chloe, why did you have to do that? I know you meant it as a joke but I was managing to get through to Victoria and now I don't even know where she's even gone" explained Kate. Even when she was angry, Kate never raised her voice and never showed her anger with her words. Chloe could see a tear forming in Kate's eye and instantly felt like shit. Kate was a lovely girl and whilst she kind of hated Victoria, she wasn't about to ruin the girl's day. Not on purpose anyway.

"Shit Kate, I really am sorry. My mouth goes into overdrive a little too much, just ask Max" said Chloe. Just as she said this, Max looked away and blushed. It took Chloe a little while to realise why and she couldn't help but release a little chuckle, being careful not to escalate the situation with Kate too badly.

Kate glanced at both Max and Chloe. Max was now looking directly at Kate with an apologetic glace. Kate sighed to herself. Everything had just gone so fast before and it was only now that she starting to make sense of it all. What Victoria was about to say must have been important and Kate had a small idea of what it could have been. She didn't know how she felt just yet…about anything. Kate knew she needed to give Victoria some space and she also needed a little time to think about what just happened.

Kate took a moment to compose herself. She breathed in and wiped her eyes and looked back at Max and Chloe and gifted them her signature smile and said,  
"It's okay Chloe. The conversation was getting a little too intense for me anyway. I'll catch up with Victoria later and make sure she's okay. We better go and see Warren now" said Kate and began to walk over to the tent in front of her with her two friends close behind.

Max Caulfield found herself smiling as she saw her old friend, grinning and chatting away to his new girlfriend Brooke Scott. Max still found it super cute that the two had gotten together and they certainly seemed happy together. Kate was also happy to see them both, both Brooke and Warren were good friends before the Vortex club situation and she thanked God that they had both survived the storm but in this moment, she found her mind was still focussing on Victoria Chase. She was still wondering about her old tormentor, now friend. Still wonder and still worrying!

Chloe Price… felt awkward!

Awkward because she didn't know Warren too well and was still a little jelouse of him…

Awkward because she was planning on proposing to her girlfriend in literally TWO days' time…

Awkward because of what just happened with Victoria and Kate! Chloe knew she needed to try and make things right and she knew how…

"Hey Max, do you mind if you and Kate go ahead and see them without me for a sec? I need a smoke" she asked. Max turned around to her girlfriend whilst Kate went ahead.

"Yeah it's cool. Are you sure everything's okay though?" asked Max in the sweetest voice Chloe had ever heard. Chloe looked around briefly to make sure no one was watching them and then proceeded to pull Max into a giant hug combined with a complementary smooching session. When they were done, Max looked around as well to make sure no one had watched them and blushed.

"Wowsers Chloe, I guess that answers my question. Just make sure not to be too long okay?" smiled Max. Chloe nodded and once again gave Max a kiss on the cheek and walked out of tent, leaving a slightly confused and love-struck Max.

' _Where the fuck are you Chase?'_ Chloe asked herself in her head. She had spent the last few minutes trying to find Victoria which was proving to be a harder task than she anticipated. Chloe had decided to find the former queen bitch after thinking to herself that maybe...just maybe Victoria was trying to be a good person. Although Chloe really wanted an excuse to put the bitch in her place, she thought about Kate and how sad she was when Victoria had run off. Chloe was constantly asking herself why Kate would be sad to see the girl who almost caused her to commit suicide run away from her, but that wasn't important at that moment in time.

After what felt like an hour of searching, Chloe finally managed to track Victoria down. She found the blond at the very corner of the rescue centre. Victoria was just standing there, glaring away into nothing. She had her back to Chloe but Chloe could tell there was something wrong with her. The way she was standing was not the stance of a dictator like before, but one of instability and…sensitivity. Victoria was visibly shaking and Chloe hoped it wasn't out of pure anger, Max had told her stories of Victoria when she was angry and whilst Chloe wasn't scared, she was a little disturbed as the blond was known to lash out with the ferocity of a disturbed grizzly bear when she was pissed off and Chloe didn't really want to deal with that right now. She just wanted to get this over with!

"Hey…Chase" said Chloe. Her arms were folded, a defensive stance Chloe learned after many arguments with her step-father.

Victoria slowly turned around to face Chloe. It was at that moment that Chloe knew everything Max had told her was right! Everything about how fragile the blond was now after the storm! Her makeup was running down her face, obviously due to her crying and her hair was all messed up and raggedy as were her normally immaculate clothes, nothing like when Chloe last saw her.

Thoughts of David came rushing through Chloe's head as she remembered how much she despised the shit out of that man and yet had actually come to care about the war veteran after seeing how he had changed for the better. Maybe the storm had done the same thing for Victoria. Maybe Max and Kate were right to give this girl another chance. Chloe never gave second chances before Max came back into her life and yet here she was, considering actually listening to Victoria Chase talk without wanting to punch her out cold. Who could of guessed it?

"What do you want Price?" asked Victoria. There was a hint of distain in her tone but this was masked by the clear emotion in her voice, something Chloe knew all too well!

"I…uhh…wanna talk" explained Chloe, now losing the defensive stance.  
"Why the fuck would I want to talk to YOU of all people? Next time, don't be so rude and butt into other people's conversations" demanded Victoria. The old Victoria would of probably taken Chloe's head of right now but not this time. Now Chloe had something to say!

"Look Vicky I'll admit, ever since I was in Blackwell I wanted to put my foot so far up your ass that your teeth would fall out and then when I heard about what you did to Kate, I was seriously considering coming down to your perfect little dorm room and fucking beating the shit out of you. But then the storm happened and everything fucking changed…." Began Chloe. It was clear Victoria had built her anger up over the course of Chloe's speech but she didn't say anything, just stood there and glared at the punk. Probably because she knew she deserved it.

Chloe continued her speech,  
"…suddenly my step-douche stopped being a douche and was nearly killed because of it. Max Caulfield turned from being a memory to a girl I intend to marry the shit out of and then I hear that the bitch of Blackwell has suddenly had a change of heart and given up being a complete and utter piece of shit and has enlisted the help of my girlfriend and the girl she almost killed to help her with that. What I'm trying to say Vicky is that things have hella changed! Rachel's...dead, your teacher is a fucking psychopath and a storm came through destroying the town…" It was now that Victoria had lost her will to try and act tough in front of the punk and at the mention of the storm that killed her best friends, she began to tear up. She didn't care what Chloe thought anymore, she knew she was right. Victoria just stood there and let Chloe finish.

"…I think it's time we properly changed too. Forget about all the shit before the storm and actually move on. You hurt Kate and it's going to be hard to forgive you for that but if she and Max can…I guess I can too. So, can you do me a huge favour and come with me to see Kate so I can stop being all grown up and shit and actually have a smoke?" asked Chloe, out of breath and mentally exhausted from the speech she just gave.

Victoria smiled.

Victoria Chase actually smiled…to Chloe?!

Did it work?

Through all the tears, Victoria actually felt better. She had made her peace with Max and probably Chloe too after all that and now all that was left was Kate Marsh.

Victoria rubbed her eyes and then looked back at the punk who was standing in front of her. Finally, there was an understanding between them, Chloe couldn't forgive Victoria for all her shit and Victoria couldn't forgive herself either but they both had to move on and make things right. Now or never!

"You might actually have a point Pri…Chloe. I need to see Kate and tell her what I wanted to earlier and…thanks. I guess now is the time I actually have to change, better late than never I guess. I better go and clean myself up and then see Kate or you might just sabotage my homework again" she stated. Both Chloe and Victoria let out a small laugh at the memory.

First David and now Victoria…could life get any stranger….


	26. Chapter TWENTY-SIX: Sand and laughter!

**Chapter TWENTY-SIX: Sand and laughter!**

 **A nice light-hearted chapter! I hope you all enjoy!**

It takes the brightest of minds in order to take something so unbearably terrible and somehow find some good. Not many are able to accomplish that task and not may even try, they just sit back and let the shit just…happen! That's pretty much what Max did for a good chunk of her life before the storm however since the terrifying events both prior and during the devastation, she learned how to find the good in pretty much anything. Well, she tried her damn best anyway! That is why she found herself smiling at her friends talking and laughing even though Warren was still recovering from a really bad injury and the people around them were also recovering. It was a nice and warm feeling that Max openly welcomed instead of the cold sense of guilt she normally felt when at that place.

Despite the incredibly awkward start, Max was enjoying herself. After ensuring Kate was okay and gave her a huge hug, she had joined her Christian friend in catching up with Warren and Brooke whilst Chloe tracked down Victoria. Max was kind of scared of what would happen when she found her but manged to subdue her fear when remembering Chloe's promise!

It turned out she had no reason to worry as a little while after she left, Chloe had returned and with Victoria following closely behind. As soon as Victoria was in her eye sight, Kate immediately stood up and looked directly her, looking slightly shocked but actually happy to see her,

"Victoria! Are you…okay?" asked Kate with genuine concern in her tone. Victoria looked at the floor, then up to Chloe who gave her a reassuring nod.

"Uhh…yeah Kate, I'm good. I was actually wondering if we could talk again…later I mean if you're cool with it?" asked Victoria meekly. Everyone around her, including Warren and Brooke, was actually surprised to hear real kindness and fragility in Victoria's voice. Max had explained to Warren and his girlfriend about Victoria's redemption and neither of them could truly believe it, despite reassurances by Kate that it was the truth but now, they just stared in awe.

Kate simply stood for a moment, doing everything she could to put the worries and concerns to the back of her head, and then smiled warmly. It was said that a smile from Kate Marsh could warm the hearts of any man or women it happened to reach and this was certainly the case for Victoria because as soon as she saw the smile, the majority of her worries were just forgotten in that moment and when Kate spoke, it instantly made her feel happier,

"Of course I'm cool with it, let's just all have fun right now since that's what we all came here to do and to listen to Warren's story about D&D and liquor of course" beamed Kate. Even Chloe and Victoria let out a chuckle at Kate's joke whilst Warren insisted it was a good story to tell.

Again…Max found herself smiling practically from ear to ear!

After spending around an hour talking to Warren and Brooke, even Chloe who seemed to be slightly warming to Warren, the party decided to leave the lovebirds alone and head out to their next destination. The last thing Max saw was Brooke and Warren hugging lovingly!

The group eventually decided to go a section of the beach that wasn't completely wrecked which was a surprise as the beach was one of the worst places in Arcadia to get hit by the tornado. When they arrived at the section of beach, which took a while thanks to Chloe and her insistence to kiss Max every few seconds, they were initially taken by surprise at the destruction that was around them! The sand seemed dark and gloomy and full of dirt and grime, whilst the water didn't look content and blue as usual but darker and kind of angry looking. The area surrounding the beach was covered in lost wooden planks and the corpses of broken sheds and buildings but at least the whale bodies had been moved during the previous week and the extremely dangerous wreckage had also been disposed of although it still was probably against the rules for them to even be there but none of them really cared, they just enjoyed being somewhere that used to bring people so much joy and peace although Max couldn't help but think of the conversation she had with a paraplegic Chloe in another timeline when they had walked by the beach.

It was Max who suggested they all take a seat on a bench near the beachfront and just chill and catch up. Victoria seemed to be very quiet during the chat and Max could tell she was focussing on what to say to Kate eventually and she decided to try and bring Victoria into the conversation somehow,

"So, where are you staying right now Victoria?" asked Max. Victoria was kind of surprised hearing Max's voice as she lost in her thoughts before then and turned towards the hipster and shrugged,

"My parents have let me crash at theirs for a while even though it's a bitch of a drive down here and that royally pisses my mother off when she has to drive me, that's one positive I guess" she explained. Kate glanced over at Victoria worryingly as she remembered the look Victoria's mother gave her daughter when she had dropped her off when they had met the other day and she was slightly concerned of the extent of the way the Chase family treated Victoria but decided to voice her concerns later when she and Victoria talked privately.

"Well I'm really glad you made it anyway" smiled Max. Victoria looked surprised at the compliment from the girl she used to bully but immediately pushed those memories to the back of her head, if she was changing for the better as Chloe said, she needed to move on and forget the past!

"Thanks Maxine, I'm…happy to be here I guess" admitted Victoria. Max was about to correct Victoria on the annoying use of her full name but Chloe's unmistakable loud voice interrupted her,

"Wait wait hold the fucking horses! Did Victoria Chase just say she's happy to be hanging out with us? Isn't that like, punishable by death with you snobs?" asked Chloe playfully, earning a huge laugh from Max and Kate whilst Victoria just glared at Chloe,

"Very funny Price, I think you'll find us 'snobs' have no problem hanging out with people but we are very careful when it comes to blue haired punks whose choice of transport resembles a junkyard's fuck toy" retaliated Victoria, however equally as playful as Chloe. As soon as the insult about her truck came up, Chloe stood up and elegantly walked over to a patch of sand, scooped it up in her palm and lobbed it directly at Victoria. Her shot had hit bullseye and struck the former queen bitch directly in the chest, impacting and covering Victoria and Max and Kate in dirty wet sand.

Victoria immediately pounced up and desperately tried to brush all the sand away from her outfit. After realising it was pointless trying to get it all off and seeing Chloe double over with hysterical laughter, Victoria decided to simply yell at the punk,

"What the fuck Price, do you even know how expensive this outfit was? You are such an asshole!" shouted Victoria at the top of her voice. Seemingly noticing the venom in Victoria's voice, Chloe stopped laughing and looked at Max and Kate worryingly.

"Shit, didn't mean to make you so…." Before she could finish, Chloe was immediately taken by surprise as a large handful of dirty sand impacted onto her chest, nearly knocking her to the floor. The shot had originated from the prepared hand of Victoria Chase who was now smiling evilly,

"Fooled you Price, I guess we snobs are more cunning than you think" she chuckled. Kate and Max both joined in laughing although they had both moved away from the bench in unison when they saw the look of war on Chloe's face,

"Oh you have done it now Vicky, prepare to get fucked up" she threatened playfully. Victoria was not prepared for the speed and flexibility of her combatant as Chloe launched a barrage of attacks that ended up covering her head-to-toe in gunk. Victoria wasn't prepared to let this one go and found herself looking for more shit to throw at Chloe.

Soon Max had also joined in after a stray shot from Chloe had hit her square in the head. Kate had decided stay out of the way and just laugh, all the while looking at Victoria and actually smiling as she saw the former bully actually having fun playing around like a kid again.

Victoria heard an inside voice, telling her she wasn't a kid and her reputation would be shattered if anyone saw her playing in the sand with these people but at this point she couldn't give a fuck! She was going to change and fuck anyone who saw it! She was actually having fun…

 **I know it's a little weird to see Victoria literally throwing sand at people for fun but as I said, something as traumatic as a huge tornado would change people and this is how it has affected Victoria, at least in this continuity anyway aha…oh and I know I haven't focussed allot on Max recently but I promise I will soon haha Thanks again!**


	27. Chapter TWENTY-SEVEN: Raven!

**Chapter TWENTY-SEVEN: Raven!**

 **Hey guys, hope you enjoy this slightly emotional little chapter!**

A long time before the storm, Victoria Maribeth Chase decided it would be amusing to spread around Blackwell that Max was just some 'slut who enjoyed fucking any man or otherwise that came near her dorm room' and ever since that, Max hated her! She wasn't someone who hated people very easily but she had good reason when it came to Victoria but now…now she was standing opposite the very women who tormented her throughout her time at Blackwell and they were smiling, laughing and actually enjoying eachothers company. Nothing's impossible!

Max, Chloe, Victoria and Kate had just spent the day together pretty much screwing around and enjoying themselves which was a nice break from the constant worrying and regret they had become accustomed too recently. It was near dark when the group decided to part ways and after spending what felt like a year cleaning sand and other garbage from their clothes, Max and Chloe hopped into the latter's truck and prepared to depart. Max couldn't help but don a wide grin when she witnessed Victoria and Kate laughing together as they both strolled over to Chloe's truck. Today was the day that Max witnessed something amazing and very unexpected happen and although no one said it out loud, it was pretty damn obvious by that point.

Kate smiled as she and Victoria made it to the truck and it was clear she was happy, probably happier than she has ever been since the Vortex Club incident. Both Chloe and Max later agreed that they wanted nothing less than for Kate, or Marshmallow as Chloe affectionately named her, to be happy and although it took Chloe a few moments and a little reluctance to admit it, for Victoria to be as well but Max could tell Chloe actually meant it!

"Well today was actually allot of fun and thanks so much for inviting me. It'll probably be a while before we all see eachother again with all the rebuilding and everything but I for one, can't wait!" Kate mused, clearly not wanting the conversation to end. Chloe and Max looked at eachother and then back at Kate. It was very clear than none of the four girls wanted this day to end, it had been so perfect and nice but they both knew they had to get back home at some point.

"It was so much fun Kate and it sucks we have to wait a while to meet again but it'll be all the better when we do! How about you Victoria, did you have fun?" asked Max, trying to subtly tease Victoria. It appeared that Victoria didn't immediately register that Max had even acknowledged her, her thoughts were on something else. When she finally did realise, she snapped her head to Max and smiled, one that actually seemed genuine!

"Uhh yeah it was a…good day Caulfi…Max. I'd actually like to do it again sometime soon even if Chloe has to be there" joked Victoria, earning a middle finger from the punk who couldn't help but chuckle at the comment.

They had ended up talking for a further ten minutes before Chloe reminded them they needed to be home before it got really dark and the four finally parted ways with Victoria asking to talk to Kate privately before they had to leave eachother. By this point even Chloe knew what it was all about and couldn't but somehow feel…proud. They would soon know if the conversation went well and they both hoped to Dog that it did!

On the way back to Chloe's house, Max's happy mood was dimmed slightly by the wreck that still lay ahead of them. It was true that FEMA had cleared away allot of the wreckage from the tornado but there was still a great deal of debris left to be cleaned. Max still couldn't help but feel responsible for it all but decided to push it to the very depths of her mind as she wanted to have a really good day, that and Chloe would kill her if she found out Max still blamed herself even slightly.

Not too far before they reached her house, Chloe suddenly stopped the truck. At first, Max was taken by surprise at the sudden halt and was about to ask what the hell just happened but found herself mute when she saw a certain look on Chloe's face. A look Max hadn't seen in a while. It was the look of surprise and guilt. Max glanced at her girlfriend worryingly, wondering what she was looking at and when Chloe spoke to her, her voice seemed oddly calm yet sad in somehow,

"L…look over their Max, on top of that red building" instructed Chloe. Max slowly looked at the building in question, kind of scared about what she was about to look at. The building was now a dark red colour and the majority of the windows were broken. The most eye-catching thing about that building was the jet black Raven who had decided to perch on the roof and seemed to be looking directly at Chloe and Max. Chloe appeared to look at the Raven as if perhaps she knew it and there was a slight warm smile hidden beneath the guilty look that was plastered all over the punk's face. Max just glared at the it. She was sure that it wasn't strange that the Raven was on the roof but there was something different about it, it had a warm look to it and was strangely more beautiful and tranquil and had a sort of glow around it.

"Wowsers…" Max stated. It was hard to take her eyes of it but Chloe seemed entirely fixated on it and it was at this point the smile on the punk's face took over as a slight tear formed in her left eye. As soon as the tear left Chloe's eye and the smile was in full force, the Raven just flew away, flying elegantly in the opposite direction, the hypnotic movements of its wings being the last thing both Max and Chloe saw of the Raven.

It took a few minutes before either Max and Chloe could speak but it was Max who broke the silence,

"What was that Chloe? It was like it was looking right at us" said Max, still feeling weird and confused about what she just saw. Chloe wiped her eyes and look hold of Max's hand and rested her head on the hipster's shoulder and then looked up lovingly to her girlfriend's face and smiled once more,

"Rachel's favourite animal was a Raven. I never really knew why but she spoke about them allot, she said some shit about them brining magic into life or something. I used to think it was weird but now…it's like she's telling me it's all okay to move on, it's okay to be happy. I guess I always felt guilty about her. You know I love you so much Max, and no matter what I am never fucking leaving you. It's almost as I have Rachel's blessing for…well you. You don't think that sounds shitty or strange, right?" asked Chloe, still snuggling up to Max.

Max smiled and gently kissed Chloe on the head after wiping away her own little tear. Seeing Chloe be so emotional and escaping from her hard punk exterior made Max feel both happy and sad. Not long ago, Max had seen a Doe that she was convinced was guiding her to the truth surrounding Arcadia Bay. It was possible this was the same thing, a sign that things would get better from here on out. Max again gazed at her girlfriend and hugged her warmly and just embraced the love and serenity before finally saying,

"Of course I don't think it's shitty or strange. To be honest Chlo, I think life could use a little strange sometimes…"

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter everyone and I know the whole Raven thing kind of comes out of nowhere but I thought it was so important for Chloe to see some sort of sign that it's okay for her to move on from Rachel, I feel like she needed it. Next chapter will be another part of the Kate storyline and I think you all know what's coming**

 **Thanks again for reading! You are all awesome!**


	28. Chapter TWENTY-EIGHT: Finally!

**Chapter TWENTY-EIGHT: Finally (KATE: Part III)**

 **The third part to my Kate storyline, this one has allot of imagery and emotion it but I seriously hope you enjoy this one, it has been of my absolute favourites to write! :D**

The magnificent and beautiful golden glow of the setting sun made Kate Marsh feel warm inside. A warmness that she so loved yet missed as for so long up until this point, she had felt just…nothing. The Vortex Club incident was only the beginning and the vicious storm only served to make Kate feel even worse and almost hollow inside. Her faith had been almost destroyed…her faith in friends…her faith in family…her faith in God! Yet now she stood, staring into the bright and beautiful sun. She liked to think that the incredible glow that had descended on the ruined town that night was a sign from God that everything could and would be okay from that point on, that she could finally have complete faith in everyone again. Finally…after so long!

Kate stood right by the sea front, so much so that her shoes were beginning to get soaked but she didn't care, the golden reflection of the sun in the water was just so mesmerising and had an intense beauty she couldn't ignore. There was still allot of discarded debris left floating aimlessly in the water and most of the beach was still devastated but Kate knew the town was only just starting to rebuild. She had heard from Max that the Prescott family had offered a huge donation to help finance the incredibly large rebuild of Arcadia Bay, a surprisingly generous thing coming from a corrupt family such as the Prescott's but Kate knew the truth. She knew that they were only doing that to draw attention away from the fact that their prized son was currently in jail awaiting trial for his and Jefferson's crimes. Kate didn't judge Nathan, not anymore, she figured he was just a pawn in Jefferson's vial 'activities'. Although he wasn't a nice person at all, Kate heavily believed in forgiveness and she did forgive him but it would be hard to even start thinking about forgiving Jefferson.

Kate's thought train was interrupted by a movement to her left. Victoria Chase now stood by Kate and joined her in simply gazing upon the warm beauty in front of them. It had been a really great day, relaxing and fun for everyone and it would seem they now were all friends and would probably even hang out in the future multiple times, at least Kate hoped they would. Victoria didn't even try to hide a smile as she looked at the setting sun. She felt proud to be in Arcadia Bay and even prouder to be standing next to the girl she almost indirectly killed. Suddenly, Victoria's smile faded when a sharp twinge of guilt pricked her out of nowhere. Victoria knew why and she thought about them every day since they died, they were her best friends and yet she treated them like slaves and now they were gone, she really missed them! She glanced at Kate and felt the need to tell her new friend what she was thinking. Victoria trusted Kate now more than ever and wanted to show that trust by opening up to the Christian, something she wasn't particularly famous for,

"I…miss them. Taylor and Courtney I mean. I wasn't good to them, I acted like a first-class bitch and yet they stayed with me until the end…until I yelled at them to get me something for a fucking hangover!" explained Victoria angrily. Kate could tell she was angry at herself more than anything and felt the need to simply hug Victoria. Her shoes splashed in the shallow water as she stepped over to the angry woman and slowly wrapped her arms around her. There was a nice and calming warmth to a hug from Kate Marsh and Victoria felt her emotions fade away as she returned the hug.

When they finally separated, Victoria took a moment to admire the girl in front of her. Kate Marsh looked…beautiful! Victoria had often felt jealous when people in Blackwell would compare Kate to an Angel but now she knew they were right. Kate's signature hair style looked just as golden as the sun and her eyes were deep and hypnotic almost. She stood with a quiet confidence that Victoria had grown to admire over the last few hours and of course, there was Kate's smile that was almost guaranteed to send Victoria's heart into overdrive.

' _Was this it?'_

' _Should I tell her?'_

' _Would she like, tell me it's a huge sin and never speak to me again or some shit?'_

Victoria stopped her internal interrogation and focussed, once again, on Kate who was now staring at the water again. They stood like that, silent, for a few more minutes before Kate decided to speak,

"Victoria…what did you want to tell me earlier?" she asked sheepishly, trying not to sound too emotional. Kate had a pretty good idea what she was going to say but she didn't want to presume anything, after all it was Victoria. Kate couldn't deny her own feelings for her former bully and even though she was sure some of her church would most likely hate the idea, she wanted to see if it could work. There was something between the two that Kate really enjoyed now and loved! They had texted eachother nearly nonstop since their first meeting after the storm, on that lone picnic table. Kate could never tell anyone, not even her sisters, that she might like a girl and she kept her admiration from Max and Chloe as she feared their reactions and possible judgement, especially from Chloe. Chloe was an amazing person but she could be a hot head sometimes. This feeling had divided her ever since she first met Victoria after the storm and she was finally ready to admit it!

"Kate I…I think it's pretty obvious what I want to tell you. I get it if you never want to see me again, I did bully you for so long and nearly made you kill yourself. I can never forgive myself for that Kate and I want to promise you I am changing and to be honest…I'm not changing for Max or Price…I'm changing for you Kate and for everyone I've hurt in the past. You finally made me realise that I don't have to overcompensate all the time, I don't have to act like a bitch for people to respect me. You are the best thing that has happened to me in a long time Kate and I…wish we could…" she was stopped dead in her conversation when Kate simply leaned over and met her lips with Victoria's. The golden glow from the sun shined brightly between the two girls. When Kate pulled back from the kiss, she looked almost shocked and surprised at what she did but it went away almost instantly and was replaced with a reassuring smile and a few tears welling up in her eyes,

"I know. I know Victoria. I think…maybe I feel the same way. After everything that happened before the storm, I can see you are c…changing and it means allot that you are doing that for me. We can't reverse what you did but it was my choice to go up on that roof and it was also my choice to come down from it. We can get past that Victoria but I think we can only do that t…together" explained Kate, the tears now making their way down her cheeks. Victoria stood shocked, so much so she had to put her hand over her mouth and couldn't stop the sudden stream of tears.

She was happy!

So damn happy!

Victoria gently grabbed Kate's hands in her own and smiled through the tears at the girl in front of her, the beautiful and amazing survivor. She was right, they could do it but only together and right now that was all that mattered!

"T…thank you Kate. Thank you so much! I don't d…deserve this. I…I…think I…love you, Kate Marsh" she chuckled but they both knew she meant it. Kate smiled again through her own tears and looked up at the one person she never thought she would ever say this too,

"You let me decide what you deserve Victoria and…I think I maybe…love you too" she laughed. As soon as those words came out of Kate's mouth, Victoria instantly brought the Christian into a huge hug and they both buried their faces into eachothers necks. Victoria smiled again,

"So…this actually happened. I think this is going to be an interesting thing to tell your parents Kate" joked Victoria. Kate laughed in response and wiped her eyes clean of tears and responded,

"I think it is going to be even worse telling Chloe to be honest" both Kate and Victoria laughed at this comment and they both gazed at eachother before looking out into the distance, smiling and holding hands, not noticing the small ghostly rabbit looking right at them who raised its ears and nose happily and sprinted away….


	29. Chapter TWENTY-NINE: Blessing?

**Chapter TWENTY-NINE: Blessing?**

Only ONE more day…

One more day until Chloe Price would make the biggest and mushiest gesture to her girlfriend…and she was nervous as fuck! No amount of alcohol could probably make the nervousness go away!

Chloe had the ring, thanks to David, and her mothers' approval, which was a fun conversation, and now all she needed was the blessing of Max' parents. She wasn't looking forward to getting that, especially due to the argument she had with the Caulfield's recently. Chloe decided the best thing to do was ask Max's father when Venessa wasn't around and she had the perfect opportunity that morning when Venessa, Joyce and David left to pick up some supplies to help rebuild sections of the house. As soon as they exited the building, Chloe sprang to action! She carefully and quietly got up from the warm embrace of her sleeping girlfriend then silently bolted over to her chest of drawers and threw some random shit on. Ever since Max started sleeping in her room, Chloe was amazed at how clean the place looked, it still looked like a herd of buffaloes had torn through it but it was definitely cleaner than before!

Being careful as to not wake Max, Chloe slowly slipped her boots on and opened her door to leave the room but not before taking on last look at her sleeping partner,

' _So Max…this is your last full day as my girlfriend…tomorrow you'll either be my fiancé or you would of turned me down and laughed your cute ass off at my lame proposal! Fuck…I hope this goes okay_!' thought Chloe, who was now starting to sweat with pure nervousness. She shook her head and resisted the urge to practically give herself a slap, there were more important things to worry about like how in the actual fuck she was going to convince Ryan Caulfield that she was serious about proposing to Max after only a week and a bit of dating her. Of course, Chloe knew the truth that everything she had gone through with Max had made them so much closer than anyone could ever imagine and they weren't ever leaving eachother but she could hardly tell Ryan about their adventures with time travel and the fact that his daughter had chosen her over the entire of Arcadia Bay!

The gentle humming coming from the living room was a good sign, that meant Ryan was in a good mood although this wasn't a surprise as Chloe rarely saw the gentle giant angry or in a bad mood, besides the time when she and Max accidentally smashed his favourite beer glass when they were kids, he became literally red in the face and had to leave the house in order to sing a song of cuss words without the young children hearing him. In many ways Ryan reminded Chloe of her own father, William.

Chloe crept into the living room to find Ryan trying his best to tidy some stuff away and make the place tidy. Max's parents had spent the night on the couch and floor rather than go to a nearby motel as they wanted to spend a little more time with Max before they left the following evening, it made Chloe a little sad that they won't be around when she proposes to Max but in a way it was a good thing, Chloe was a little scared of what Venessa would say. Ryan turned to Chloe mid-way through clearing a candy wrapper from the table and was a little surprised to see Chloe awake this early in the morning,

"Oh, hey there Chloe. I didn't think you and Max would be up this early. How you doing?" he asked sweetly. Chloe smiled at the big man in greeting and made her way over the back doors leading into the garden. It was a very sunny morning and it wasn't cloudy either which was a bonus although the massive amount of wreckage that still remained in the garden made it look sort of depressing. Chloe turned back towards Ryan and once again put on a smile,

"Hey Ryan. I'm pretty good actually, I had a good day with Max and her friends although no drinking promise! I was actually wondering if…I could talk to you about something i..if you're not like, busy or some shit?" asked Chloe whilst rubbing the back of her neck as she did when she was nervous. Ryan looked initially confused but then smiled warmly as he gestured to the couch. Chloe walked over to the couch and sat down whilst Ryan sat next to her. He sat up straight and had his hands in his lap almost as if he knew it was going to be something serious. Chloe decided to begin lightly,

"So…uhh…this is kinda awkward. I just wanted to say thanks for accepting me and Max as a couple, I know a looser punk drop-out girl is probably not what you imagined Max to date but I'm glad you actually don't mind it" she said, looking down at the floor. Ryan chuckled slightly and looked directly at Chloe,

"First, I don't think you are a looser and second, you make my daughter happy and that is the important thing! I know Venessa came off as being a little strong but she is happy for you both as well. I haven't seen my Maxine this happy in years, not since we moved to Seattle. When I see her look at you, I see actual love in her eyes and she told me all about you and how much she does love the hell out of ya last night when you came back. You make her happy and she makes you happy and this is something so important especially to Max…" started Ryan. This speech had nearly reduced Chloe to tears and she normally took great care to avoid any sort of tears in front of anyone except Max but right now she was struggling to hold them in! She was so happy that Ryan actually accepted her and this would make things so much easier come the time when she actually proposed to Max.

Chloe was about to say something, a thank you to her possible future father-in-law and gear up to ask him for his blessing but Ryan spoke first and Chloe would never forget those words…

"…that is why I am proud to give you my blessing to marry my daughter"

' _Woah…._

 _What…_

 _The…_

 _Fuck!'_

Chloe was speechless! She couldn't believe what she had just heard! Her head was spinning and she felt a sudden surge of emotions, a mixture of shock and just…happiness! Before Ryan could say anything further, Chloe leapt up and hugged the bearded man. Chloe could no longer hold it back and a single tear made its way down her face. She didn't know how Ryan could have known she was going to ask this but she didn't care, she was just so happy in that moment! Thankfully after Chloe finally pulled back from the hug, Ryan explained himself;

"Your mother asked David where his grandmother's ring was, apparently he always kept it near him at all times and he have some lame reason that was obviously bull! I couldn't help but overhear them discussing it when I went to the bathroom and that's when he told her what he really did with it. I know you and Max have only been dating for a week now but Max is old enough to make her own decision as are you so as I said…you have my blessing and I will talk to Venessa and I know she will be happy for you both and of course, I don't have to tell ya what'll happen if you break her heart now do I?" joked Ryan. Chloe sniffled, leave it to David to somehow help her out in the silliest way possible. Chloe stood up and wiped away the tears, she now really wanted to see Max and give her a big cuddle and a kiss and seeing as how Ryan is the only one in the building…maybe more.

"I…don't know what to say! I can't thank you enough Ryan…I really can't! I promise I will never hurt Max…well not intentionally anyway. Thank you so much again. I better go up and see her. By the way, you are hella awesome Ryan Caulfield…just saying" announced Chloe and with that, she left to see Max, leaving Ryan laughing to himself and even supressing his own tears.

 **Thanks for reading everyone and I just wanted to clear a few things. I don't live in America so I am not sure if same-sex marriage is legal in Oregon at this point but for storytelling purposes I am ignoring whether it is or isn't. I understand that I made a continuity mistake in the previous chapter when I mentioned Nathan being in prison when I think he is supposed to be dead by that point and I am sorry for that, it was my fault entirely but for this AU, he is alive and in prison! Thanks again everyone for the support!**


	30. Chapter THIRTY: Almost Time!

**Chapter THIRTY: Almost Time!**

 **So sorry this is massively late but I thought I would post a calm and sort of fluffy chapter before the emotional roller-coaster that will be the next chapter when the question will be asked! Thanks so much for reading!**

It was the huge and loud bang of a hammer or some sort of tool that woke Max up. She didn't even know what time it was but she decided to get up anyway and investigate the strange noise. Max noticed that Chloe wasn't beside her and like always this made her feel uneasy, a feeling she had become all too familiar with since the storm but particularly recently as Chloe seemed to be acting…differently and it was starting to worry Max.

Once Max had donned her famous shirt and jeans combo, but without her hoodie since it was very hot that day, she opened the door to the stairs only to be greeted by the more-than-pleasant aroma of bacon and eggs. Ever since Max had moved in, the smell of a Joyce Price breakfast was literally the best thing to wake up too, that and the morning 'sessions' with Chloe. Max began to blush slightly at the dirty thought as she wondered down the stairs and was immediately greeted with her father walking into the living room with a large plank of wood over one shoulder and a paint can in his other hand,

"Morning darlin, I think Joyce is nearly done with breakfast" he spoke warmly as he made his way past Max and into the living room. Max found herself slightly sad to hear her dad speak as she knew this was their last day before they left for Seattle. Max walked into the kitchen to find Joyce at the stove, cooking her famous bacon and egg breakfast and slightly humming whilst preparing it.

"Hi Joyce, do you need any help with that?" asked Max as she stared directly at the sizzling bacon in the pan. Joyce turned to face Max and smiled.

"Oh, hey Max! I think I'm all good here thank you but if you really want to help then you can drag that girlfriend of yours and my husband inside! I've been calling them in for ages but they've been working on Chloe's truck ever since we got back" proclaimed Joyce who was still smiling. Max still found it weird whenever someone directly called Chloe her girlfriend. She certainly wasn't embarrassed about it but it all still felt new to her.

"Wowsers, Chloe and David are working…together. I still am so not used to that. I'll go fetch them Joyce" laughed Max as she made her way into the hall and out of the front door.

The sun had decided to shine extra brightly that day and the sky had turned into a striking and mesmerising light blue colour. The street seemed to be much cleaner now and the grass actually seemed to be green rather than the sickly shade it had been since the storm. A few birds flew by as Max walked out of the house. She was more than happy that life seemed to be adjusting now and everything seemed to be getting happier, she even received a text from Kate the previous night that something wonderful had happened with her and Victoria but wouldn't say what just yet although Max had a pretty damn good guess what Kate meant and it made her so happy that she almost shed a few tears.

The unmistakable sound of Chloe Price swearing at something made Max laugh and she turned to see the latter kicking the wheel of her truck in anger and was holding her hand. It seemed that she had probably broken something on her truck or it had just refused to work entirely as was the way of a rusty old truck she had found in the junkyard years ago. Chloe had told Max the tale of how she acquired the truck and how she personally had fixed it up herself with parts she had found in the junkyard also. The truck certainly looked like something someone would leave behind in an old junkyard but it meant something to Chloe, a reminder of a better time when…Rachel was alive.

"Stupid asshole piece of shit! I should've sold you for parts years ago!" exclaimed Chloe. Max couldn't help but chuckle and smile as the language of Chloe reminded her that she was never leaving her. Suddenly, David emerged from inside the garage and folded his arms at his step-daughter.

"Chloe there is no sense in getting all riled up, it aint going to work any faster. Now simmer down while I take a look at what the problem is" instructed David. Max had noticed that David's tone was nowhere near as angry or demanding as it once was and the arguments between him and Chloe had become more of a friendly rivalry which was a source of endless amusement for Max.

"David, already know the problem with it. The problem is that it never works when I want it too and when it does, it gives me endless shit all the damn time" explained Chloe. David smiled and walked up to his step-daughter.

"That seems familiar to me somehow, I can't seem to put my finger on it" he laughed as he made his way past Chloe and towards the front of the truck with some sort of wrench. Chloe sniggered at the sly comment and thought for a second before seemingly deciding on a comeback,

"Well moustache man, I think you should just shove that finger up your ass! Anyway you know I need this damn thing working fully for tomorrow night, it's important to me that it needs to be ready for…" Chloe stopped suddenly as soon as she saw Max and looked around nervously before shaking it off and donning her signature cocky grin as she practically ran towards her girlfriend and brought her into a loving embrace and a few kisses as well.

It wasn't strange for Chloe to do things like that but this time it seemed different, like she was just super happy for some reason or perhaps excited but in any case, Max found herself returning the love and just stood there hugging Chloe for lord knows how long. When they finally decided to part, Max decided to ask Chloe about the way she had been acting lately,

"What's been going on recently Chloe? You have been all nervous lately like your hiding something from me" asked Max.

Max loved Chloe so much and there was no changing this but it was true that she was worried. Normally Chloe would tell her everything and wouldn't hold any secrets but recently it was different, she had been very romantic recently which was unusual for Chloe who normally expressed her love in other ways and now she was trying to fix her truck to go on some sort of journey the next evening! All of that coupled with how nervous she acted whenever Max brought it up meant something seemed off and Max was beginning to worry about it.

Chloe hesitated before speaking to Max but even then, her tone seemed odd and even slightly evasive,

"Uh I would never hide anything from you Mad Max, you're totally my partner in crime remember? I've just been feeling weird lately is all, especially with the Victoria and David shit, I hated both of them and now I actually kinda like them both so it's pretty weird for me so…stop worrying Max okay?" insisted Chloe.

Max wasn't convinced by Chloe's reassurance and she knew she couldn't let it get to her so she grabbed Chloe's hand and led her further away so David couldn't hear them speak. Once Max assured herself that no one could hear them or interrupt, she decided to be straight with Chloe as this was often the best approach when confronting her,

"I need you to be truthful with me Chloe please! I love how romantic you've been lately but it sort of just came out of nowhere and not to mention how nervous you get sometimes when talking to me. You're evasive whenever I bring it up and sometimes I swear you've been avoiding me. Yesterday was amazing to see everyone together as friends having fun but that's probably the only time I have seen you fully happy. So just tell me if there is anything you've been hiding and we can work it out Chloe!" stated Max.

Chloe gazed at Max like she had been scolded by a teacher! Chloe knew that Max was right, she had been acting weird lately but that was only because she scared about the proposal and if Max would even say yes. Everything had been worrying her and she really wanted to get everything perfect and she had it all planned but the sudden failure of her truck had put a literal spanner in the works and now she was more nervous than ever but she needed to throw Max off the trail or it would ruin everything she had planned so Chloe knew that somehow, she had to come up with something to distract Max from the truth but…how?

….

….

…She had it! She knew that to say!

"Uhhh okay Max, you're right! Lately I have been…trying to give up weed! Like, I know I haven't done it in a while but I don't want to do it again really and the thought of never waking and baking again is pretty tough for me. I am doing it for you Maxi-pad and I'm sorry if it got that noticeable" explained Chloe. What she said hadn't been a complete lie, she did want to give up smoking weed to show Max exactly how much she meant to her and it cost allot of money especially since Frank had decided to stop dealing and weddings cost allot of money.

Chloe hoped that this would at least tide Max over for a little while as it was almost time for the proposal and when Max gave her a large and meaningful kiss on the lips, it literally made Chloe sigh in relief.

"Chloe I'm so sorry for doubting you, I can get a little over the top sometimes" said Max, resting her head on Chloe's shoulder. Suddenly, Chloe smiled cheekily and looked directly into her girlfriend's eyes,

"Well I think you should make it up to me aaaaaand I have a pretty good way that you could do it" sniggered Chloe. Max smiled and brought her head up to Chloe's ear and whispered,

"Why don't we head up to the bedroom and tell Joyce to save our breakfast for later" asked Max seductively, which normally ended up sounding like she was in pain! 

"I don't know Maxi-pad, I think I want a different kind of breakfast right now" laughed Chloe. Before Max had time to blush, Chloe had grabbed her hand and raced over to the front door before yelling to her step-dad,

"Me and Max need to go sort something, you got this right?" she asked in relation to the problem with the truck. Before David could even reply, the door slammed and Chloe and Max had vanished out of site. David turned back to the truck and began to tinker with the engine however stopped a few minutes in as he heard a strange noise from above.

David looked around to discover the source of the unusual sound before stopping dead in his tracks when he realised exactly what the sound was….

…Chloe's bedroom window…was open!


	31. Chapter THIRTY-ONE: FOREVER!

**Chapter THIRTY-ONE: FOREVER!**

Today…was the day!

It was now or never!

Today…Chloe will propose to Maxine Caulfield, her girlfriend and the best damn thing that ever happened to her.

The intense beauty of the golden glow of sunset always looked pretty damn amazing to Chloe Price but it seemed more so that day as she gazed into it out of her bedroom window. Despite her punkish appearance and general love for anarchy, sites such as the sun setting in the evening still looked beautiful to her. She remembered once, a long time ago, when she had yet another argument with David, she had retreated to her usual hideout in the junkyard and just stared into the sun with a joint in one hand and a baseball bat in the other until Rachel came to her rescue. Chloe had been thinking about Rachel allot the past few days, especially since she saw the crow. Rachel had always talked about the crow and how it always symbolised that bad things were coming but when she and Max had witnessed a crow land on a nearby building, Chloe was sure it didn't mean anything bad but some sort of sign from Rachel that it was okay to move on. Chloe had never really believed in all that mystical crap but ever since she met Rachel and then Max's powers, she didn't know what to believe…maybe she just hoped that Rachel somehow was at peace.

Chloe snapped herself out of her train of thought and wondered over to her bed and pulled out a small white box from a secret compartment located near the back of her bed which had previously been home to a secret stash of marijuana but now housed the ring that she was going to present to Max. Chloe had thought long and hard about where she was going to do this and after a long time of pacing and a few shots of vodka, she had decided to ask her mother for some advice. It has been a hell of a long time since Chloe had confided in her mother for advice, especially about something so personal, but since things were now good with her family, she decided it would be a good time to ask. After a very mushy and kind of awkward conversation, Chloe and Joyce had finally decided on a place and Chloe couldn't think of anywhere better…

Before leaving the living room, Joyce had smiled and gave her daughter a huge and loving hug. Chloe was emotional before with all the talk about the proposal but after that, she was fighting tears!

"Oh honey, you are growing up way to fast. I know I haven't said it much recently but I am truly proud of you Chloe! I know David is too and you know what…your father would be too, so much!" Joyce had said which triggered Chloe's eyes to finally give up and let out the large number of tears that had built up. For the first time in a truly long time, they were tears of happiness!

"Thank you so much mom, I honestly mean that! I know I have been a pretty shitty daughter but I am trying to change, for the better this time and now I have Max to make sure I will" Chloe admitted. The two separated from the hug and Chloe wiped her eyes with her sleeve. It was true what she had said, Chloe was changing and it was mostly because of her girlfriend. In the last few weeks, Chloe had nearly given up on the weed and drank less alcohol and she actually felt better because of that although she had to admit she did miss it sometimes especially when she was stressed. Joyce had looked at her daughter warmly and held her cheek in her hand, tears clearly welling up in her eyes,

"I know honey, Max is one amazing woman and I love her like she's my daughter…hell she will be soon enough. You are great for eachother and remember that because if you hurt her in the future then you will have me to deal with but I know you will never hurt Max…not on purpose anyway" Joyce had joked, earning a laugh from Chloe.

Chloe smiled at the pleasant memory and opened the white box to reveal an even smaller black box that contained the ring. It was a beautiful looking ring and Chloe knew Max would love it. She pocketed the black box with the ring in it and grabbed her jacket and dashed out of her room. It was almost time to go but first, there was one more thing she needed to do!

Max Caulfield lifted a bag of clothes into her parents' car. It was time for her mom and dad to head back to Seattle and she was saddened by this but in a way relieved because surprisingly neither her mom nor her dad had tried to convince Max into coming with them which was strange as her mother had spent a big chuck of her visit trying to get Max to come back to Seattle and for a while it seemed like she wouldn't no for an answer, it was as if someone had given them a reason why it was better that Max stay at the Price household. Either way Max was glad that she would be staying with Chloe but still upset that her parents were leaving. Ryan and David exited the house carrying the last few things the Caulfield's had and loaded it into the car. Ryan and David exchanged a few words and shook eachothers hands with David wishing them a good drive home. Max's mother came out the house next with Joyce close behind and gave her a hug goodbye.

"Where's Chloe?" asked Max to no one in particular. Everyone seemed to glance at eachother awkwardly briefly before Joyce spoke up,

"I think she just left to see someone but she'll be back soon I think" explained Joyce. Max still couldn't help but feel uneasy at that moment, her worries about Chloe not being honest with her still remained from the previous day and now all Joyce could say was that Chloe was seeing 'someone'. Max put her feeling aside and said to herself that she would have a conversation with Chloe about it later. Max's father was the first to walk up to his daughter and outstretched his arms to which Max smiled and embraced her father.

"Well darlin' this is goodbye for now but you make sure to be a good girl for Joyce and David. I'll miss ya Max and I love you always. Oh and one more thing, a little word of advice…" Ryan lowered himself to whisper to his daughter,

"…you might want to keep it down in your room in future" he finished. Max immediately went bright red and made a slightly uncomfortable cough, mainly out of pure surprise.

"Uhh…yeah sure dad, thanks and I love you too and make sure to come visit soon" said Max. Ryan laughed and gave his daughter a kiss on the forehead and walked over to the car.

Venessa smiled and tearly walked over to Max. She had been told about Chloe's plan very recently and it was still a shock to her but she had been working on her acceptance of Chloe and was happy that Max was. She only wished she could be there for her daughter when it eventually happened. She hugged Max and made her promise to call or text at least every other day,

"Don't worry mom I will. I love you and drive home safely" said Max. Venessa and Ryan gave their final farewells to everyone and hoped into their car. Venessa put her hand on Ryan's knee and smiled. Ryan returned the smile gave his wife a kiss. They both knew what was about to happen and they couldn't be happier. As they left the Price house and gave one final beep of the horn to say goodbye, both Ryan and Venessa Caulfield cried as their daughter was finally going to be truly happy with someone they both knew she loved.

Max let a small tear let loose. She loved her parents dearly and wished they could stay longer but was happy nonetheless that they came. She went into the house and sat in the living room and decided to text Kate. Max had heard the news that her and Victoria had decided to try and see how things went as an actual COUPLE! Max couldn't be happier when she heard the news and even Chloe had been happy, despite her small hatred for Victoria which admittedly was getting smaller every day. Max got out her phone and messaged Kate:

 **Max:** _Hey Kate, just checking up on you and seeing how  
you're doing tonight._

 **Kate:** _Hey Max, I'm good thanks, Victoria and I are going  
out tonight. It's actually kinda scary. I haven't done this sort of thing before._

 **Max:** _You'll be fine Kate trust me, make sure Victoria doesn't hurt you again, I know she is different but just be careful okay?_

 **Kate:** _I know Max, thanks for always looking out for me! Victoria doesn't want to hurt me I know it. You be careful too and I hope you have a really great night!_

 **Max:** _Why? What's so special about tonight?_

 **Kate:** _No reason. Just have a nice night! God bless you Max!_

 **Max:** _Thanks Kate, you too!_

Max decided to leave the conversation there. Kate was acting a little weird but maybe it was only because she was really happy about her evening with Victoria. Max heard the struggling engine of Chloe's truck pull up in the drive and smiled. Chloe was home and Max couldn't wait to see her!

Chloe pulled up into the drive and quickly jumped out. She had just finished acquiring a particular costume from an old friend of hers who lived not far away from Arcadia Bay. She had contacted her friend, Steph, when she remembered her old friend's love for the theatre and hoped she knew where to get the type of costume she needed and by a stroke of luck, she did. After getting the costume, she raced back to her home before the sun had a chance to fully set. Everything was perfect and in place, now all she needed to do was get Max and it would be almost time for the most nerve wracking time of her life!

Chloe climbed out of her truck to be greeted by David who smiled at her. His head still had a bandage on it but it was smaller than before. David stood silently for a second before breaking the silence,

"So…uh…you're actually going through with this huh. Look, I know I haven't been very supportive of you, in actual fact I've been a massive douche but I wanted to say that I'm…well…proud of you Chloe and if you and Max ever need anything in the future then I wanted you to know that me and your mother will be here and also…I want you to have this" David handed Chloe an envelope. Chloe looked at it puzzled before shaking it and when she realised what was in it, she looked shockingly up to David.

"There's a thousand dollars in there! It's going to cost us allot to get the house all done up even with all the help but this is something I saved up a few years back. It isn't much and I know it won't make up for the shit I pulled but…well it's something" David stated.

Chloe stood speechless. David was giving her money, that he had saved up. David Madsen who had called Chloe a loser several times was giving her money. Real money, American currency! Chloe couldn't help but tear up again and simply brought David into a hug. After all these years, after all the hate, pain and despair they had caused eachother…after all that they were hugging and actually enjoying it. Chloe had never imagined that she would be crying happily because of this man but here she was,

"David I…literally don't know what to say! Thank you, thank you so much. You are my step-dad after all and it's probably about time I started treating you like one and don't worry, I won't spend it on weed and booze" she laughed causing a similar reaction from David. Chloe heard the front door open and out walked Max Caulfield, looking more beautiful than ever before. Chloe gave one last smile and pat on the shoulder to David and moved over to Max and scooped her up and kissed her directly on the lips,

"Wowsers Chloe, that was sudden. Is everything okay?" asked Max.

"Of course I'm fine hippie, just happy to see you is all. Actually, I need to show you something. We'll need to drive there but it shouldn't take too long" Chloe pointed in the direction of the truck and Max happily followed but not before asking,

"Okay, you mind me asking where it is you're taking me this late?" she asked but all she got in return was Chloe making a zip gesture on her lips. Max relented and hopped into the truck followed by Chloe and they both set of for wherever it was they were going and little did Max know this was about to become the happiest evening of her entire life!

The lighthouse overlooking the seafront stood sentient. The sun had nearly completely set and the magnificent sun rays made it look like a world monument. In a way, to Chloe and Max this was a monument. This was where it had all started, when Chloe first learned of Max's time powers but it was also where it all could have ended. Max had a choice between letting her live or allowing her to die in that bathroom alone and Max had chosen Chloe over the whole town. Chloe had been ready to sacrifice herself but Max had made the decision to give Chloe a fighting chance to make up for her past mistakes and become a better person! That meant something to Chloe but it also meant something to Max too. Chloe was initially worried as this was the spot Max had witnessed her home town get nearly completely destroyed by a tornado that she believed she had caused but now there was a different view. Rather than a town in ruins, it was now a torn in rebuilding. From that one spot, someone could see the result of so many people banding together to rebuild a town that was special to them. Construction workers and large vehicles could be seen rebuilding the damaged buildings and people could actually be seen actually walking around now like ants building their nest. That is exactly what Max Caulfield saw as soon as she left Chloe's truck and gazed upon her home town.

For so long, ever since the storm, Max had felt like she caused so much suffering and so much death but at that moment, all she could see was teamwork and cooperation from people who might not have even met if it wasn't for the storm. The aftermath of the storm had bought so much misery but also some good. Victoria had changed into someone so much better and kinder, Kate's faith has never been stronger, David was turning into an actual step-father to Chloe, Frank had turned his back on the drug dealing business, most of her friends were safe and Nathan and Jefferson had been brought to justice and had brought her and Chloe so much closer together than ever before. Max could never forgive herself for the pain she caused others and probably never would but she doesn't have to blame herself constantly, to focus so much on the past that she can't move on to the future. She knew from the moment she laid eyes on Arcadia Bay then that she could finally move on.

Max must have been staring silently for nearly ten minutes as it gave Chloe plenty of time to change into her costume.

"C…Chloe, have you seen this? The town it's actually rebuilding. It's so beautiful, I can't believe it…"

"Why don't you turn around Captain Max" asked Chloe. Max, slightly confused at the title she was just given, slowly turned around and was shocked to see Chloe Price dressed in a near perfect pirate costume complete with a black hat like they used to wear as kids. Max couldn't help but let out some laughter at the sight in front of her. Chloe looked amazing and just like a real punk pirate.

"Chloe, why are you wearing that? It looks so cool but…why?" asked Max in between laughs. Chloe looked cocky although Mac could tell she was ever so slightly embarrassed at what she was wearing.

"Hey…we always wanted to dress up as full pirates so now here you go" said Chloe who proceeded to twirl as if she was in some sort of fashion show. Max again laughed and looked around to see if anyone was actually watching them,

"You are such a dork!" proclaimed Max who was still laughing.

Chloe began to walk toward Max and held out her hand. In Chloe's palm was a black eye patch,

"Well, you used to love wearing this so I thought why not? Here you go Maxi-pad" she said, handing over the eye patch. Max smiled and shook her head in amusement. It was so funny that Chloe wanted to do this and Max didn't mind participating in something that reminded her of their childhood.

Max took the eye patch from Chloe's hand and went to put it on only to immediately stop dead as soon she looked inside it. Max stood silently, mouth wide open and jaw practically hitting the floor below. In that moment, all thoughts and feeling left Max's head and was replaced by shock, amazement and just…happiness. Her other hand that was free immediately flew to her wide-open mouth and tears instantly came flying down her face. Inside that small black eye patch, taped onto the inside was…a ring!

Immediately, Max knew what it was and what it stood for and she never expected it. She glanced up at Chloe who was now down on one knee, tears now racing down her own cheeks as she gazed up at Max. Chloe then said six words that Max will never ever forget…

"Max Caulfield…will you marry me?"

Max was now shaking. She couldn't believe this was happening. After all these years, after everything they had been through as kids and as adults, Chloe was asking to Max to marry her, to spend the rest of their lives together. There was only ever one answer that Max could ever give and to Chloe, this was the best single word she had ever heard…

"Yes…"

And that was it. Chloe jumped up and embraced Max Caulfield, her fiancé. Both Max and Chloe were now in full on crying mode as they stood together, the happiest they had ever been. No matter what happened now, no matter where they would go or what would try to stop them, they were together and nothing would ever get in their way!

 **Wow…that chapter was so much fin to write and made me super happy. This IS NOT the end! Starting next chapter, there may be a time skip or something but I want to start a new storyline, perhaps leading towards their wedding and start some new character arcs. Thank you SO SO much for all the support and the reviews, it has been so amazing and you are all amazing! See you next chapter!**


	32. Chapter THIRTY-TWO: Jingle Bells PART 1

**Chapter THIRTY-TWO: Jingle Bells (PART ONE)!**

" _ **Wowsers…"**_

How can a partially destroyed town in Oregon look so captivating and beautiful?

That was the first question that popped into Max Caulfield's head as she gazed upon the white wonderland outside her bedroom window. The date was now December 25th and…

…it was officially Christmas!

The town of Arcadia Bay had transformed into a winter wonderland that would make the North Pole jealous and this made the young photographer incredibly happy!

It had been around two months since the horrifying events that rendered the small seaside town of Arcadia Bay into nearly nothing but a pile of bricks and misery but allot had happened in those two months! Firstly, the Prescott family had decided to finally show their generous side and financially assist a rebuild of the town, although everyone knew this was clearly to try and draw attention away from the activities of their son, Nathan. Also on a much happier note for Max Caulfield… **she got engaged!** And it was to the most beautiful girl she had ever set her eyes on, her best friend and partner in crime and time, Chloe Elizabeth Price. The punk had proposed to Max as they looked upon the rebuilding of Arcadia Bay where it all began by the lighthouse. That day was the best day of Max's life and the beginning of a whole new chapter in the life of the young photographer and she was determined to make it the best chapter she would ever live through. Now, months later, Arcadia Bay was looking much better and showed signs that it would someday return to being a place people could actually visit and live.

The bright white shine of the twinkling snow and ice made for an incredible backdrop and a golden photo opportunity for Max and she already had her camera ready. The young hipster had decided to focus on her photography more and try to put the tainted memory of Mark Jefferson to the very depths of her brain. The psychopath had been locked away somewhere cold and damp in reality so why shouldn't he receive the same treatment in memory. The familiar sound of the snap of her camera made Max smile as she retrieved the photo and shook it. When the photo was finally clear enough to see properly, the smile on Max's face grew even wider as the contrast between the debris that still littered the path outside the Price-Madsen residence and the tantalising crystal look of the snow made for an incredible picture. Practically skipping over to her brand-new wall collage, Max pinned the new photo up near the top of her collected works. Her fiancé had allowed her to put her photos on the wall where the phrase 'EVERBODY LIES…NO EXCEPTIONS' used to live. Chloe had decided to remove her posters and graffiti after realising Max had nowhere to put her photos which she loved to see and made the space bare as a sort of present to the love of her life. The small romantic gesture had earned a large reward for Chloe that evening!

The mouth-watering scent of breakfast snapped Max out of her photo-coma and sent her into the immediate action of getting dressed as she had slept in late after a particularly action-packed and love-filled early Christmas present from her fiancé the previous night. Of course, Chloe had gotten up hours earlier to help her mom and step-father prepare for Christmas Day. It seemed that this Christmas was the year Chloe had decided to step up. Max smiled to herself at the very thought of Chloe Price and quickly put on her outfit for the day, her regular jeans but this time with a pretty Christmas shirt with a reindeer in the snow instead of her regular shirt and hoodie, and left the room and descended the stairs to locate the source of the incredible smell!

"Fuck…shit fucking fuck!" Chloe beckoned and waved her hand in pain. Only Chloe Price could burn her hand so easily when attempting to cook bacon. Thankfully she had inherited her mother's gift at cooking awesome-sauce breakfasts but sadly did not inherit Joyce Price's ability to stay focused when preparing meals. Now starring daggers at the stove that burned her, Chloe prepared her routinely barrage of cussing when she was interrupted by the arrival of a hipster angel. Max Caulfield walked into the kitchen with her regular golden glow and the very second the punk laid eyes on her fiancé, she gave a metaphorical finger to the pain in her hand and dashed over to Max and pulled her into a tight but loving embrace. Chloe's bear hugs had become a regular occurrence in Max's love life but she swore they could nearly completely wind her sometimes but regardless she loved receiving them anyway and no bear hug from Chloe was complete without a complementary make out session that Max always looked forward to. The couple pulled out of their hug with a large blush visible on Max's cheeks which Cloe chuckled at,

"You know…seeing that cute blush and smile is the best Christmas gift a punk could ask for, future Mrs. Price" smiled Chloe, her hand gently stroking Max's warm face.

"Hey, we haven't decided on Mrs. Price yet hun, Chloe Caulfield totally sounds like a badass video game character" informed Max, kissing Chloe's hand. Chloe's grin widened at a chance to embarrass her lover and then proceeded to pull Max into another hug,

"It's that nerdy-ness that I love most about you Caulfield…that and your amazeballs tongue skills obviously" winked Chloe. The blush on Max's face now turned a deep shade of red like a cherry and her jaw dropped open, nearly hitting the floor.

" _Chloe!_ " Max whispered loudly prompting the beginning of a laughing fit from Chloe, nearly doubling over with laughter.

The smile on Chloe's face grew even bigger upon seeing the shocked expression on David Madsen's face as he stood by the living room table preparing plates. Upon realising their audience, Max blushed even more and immediately looked away in embarrassment whilst Chloe descended into a deeper laughing fit, nearly cracking a rib with laughter. David just stood there, gazing embarrassingly at his step-daughter and her fiancé. Rubbing his neck, David decided to break the awkwardness that had enveloped the room,

"Okay so…I am going to try my darndest to forget I heard that" he stated and went back to his duties. Chloe calmed herself down and again winked at Max as she threw her gaze onto her step-father,

"Oh come on David, you know Christmas isn't complete without a little bit of my famous wit that you absolutely love to hear" explained Chloe who still is laughing. David smiled and looked up,

"Actually, Chloe I wouldn't know considering the last Christmas we spent together, you filled my car with snow and openly wished that Santa would take me away and dump me with some cannibal tribe for their Christmas dinner" informed David, smiling. Chloe shook her head and jokingly stuck her middle finger at David and returned to her bacon, which had now turned slightly black from neglect.

The rest of the morning was filled with setting up decorations and decorating the tree with tinsel. Everyone has collectively decided to avoid opening presents until that afternoon when the guests arrived. The week before, Max came up with the idea to invite everyone she knew, who had survived the devastation, to the Price-Madsen house for Christmas dinner and she was surprised at the amount of people who said yes. Stella, Dana and Juliet had all said they would be spending time with their families that Christmas which was understandable considering the events of October but most of the others had made some sort of deal with their families to do their own Christmas dinner later in the evening. Max was so glad when Kate and Victoria had been the first to accept her invitation. The two had been dating since that day on the beach and were getting along really well which meant Chloe had lost a bet with Max and Dana. Even David liked the idea of everyone coming together at Christmas which was surprising considering his earlier hatred of strangers in his home but the former soldier had changed so drastically in the past few months, much to everyone's joy.

As preparations continued into the early afternoon, Max and Chloe took a timeout and wondered out into the snow and held eachother lovingly. The day was going amazingly and everything was going as planned. Max and Chloe had not yet planned the exact day of their wedding but the thought of it always made Max smile. She couldn't believe that after all these years of knowing Chloe Price and the horrible events they had both gone through that they would be actually marrying soon…like actually 100% married. The money David had given them would help a bit and they also had some left-over money from that night in Blackwell surprisingly and Max's parents were helping out as well as Joyce of course. Max wanted to make that day really special as, not only was it her wedding, but for Chloe who would have her mother, step-father and father-in-law there but…not her actual father and Max knew this would upset her future wife greatly.

"You know hippie, all my life, shit has been…well shit and I thought with Rachel, I had finally found someone but as much as I loved her, I could never have loved anyone as much as you Maxine Caulfield. I am honestly honoured to one day soon be called your wife" she said quietly, halting tears. Chloe had gotten better at the so called 'mushy shit' in recent months and it always made Max smile and nearly choke up at the displays of romance from the same girl who once called a love poem a 'perverted playwright pile of piss'.

Max gave her fiancé a loving kiss on the neck and put her hand on Chloe's cheek lovingly and said,

"I love you so much that I'm going to ignore the fact you called me Maxine! But I do love you Chloe and no one, not even a massive fucking tornado can ever change that! As Snape would say…always" chuckled Max. Chloe also laughed at Max's nerdism and they both remained outside snuggling and kissing as the snow began to fall softly and gently.

…

…

…

In a light place that was warm and calm and peaceful…she looked upon the two girls and smiled, a smile full with the same warmth and peace that surrounded her. She gazed upon the blue haired girl and felt a tear role down her cheek…Chloe was happy and she was so glad, that's all she ever wanted to see really. It was truly Christmas after all. Rachel closed her eyes and drifted back into the peace, smiling all the way…

 **END OF PART ONE!**

 **Merry Christmas everyone, hope you all have an amazing day! PART TWO will be out later** **this evening,** **this very same day (UK time). Sorry for the split, I want to write a full chapter about the day with everyone together but I felt like we needed an introduction and thanks so much for reading!**


	33. Chapter THIRTY-THREE:Jingle bells PART 2

**Chapter THIRTY-THREE: Jingle Bells (PART TWO)!**

The time was now 6:00pm and everyone would be arriving soon and Max was actually kind of nervous. It had been a few months since she had seen her friends from Blackwell and she was internally freaking out over what to say. They all knew about her and Chloe but she still wanted to make a good impression.

After a good few hours, the Price-Madsen house had regenerated into a Christmas themed colour explosion and, besides it looking cute and festive, there was a good reason for all that prep…

…the Storm!

The evil mega-storm that had feasted on Arcadia Bay has taken many lives and caused so much pain and misery, not only for those who had lost their lives or those who were injured during the carnage but for the families who had to deal with the loss of loved ones. Although no one could ever forget the events of October, Max and Chloe wanted to make those around them as happy as they can be on an event that should be filled with happiness and joy rather than sadness and regret. Max had deduced that Chloe's new-found determination to help around that particular Christmas was probably due to her own experiences with loss and she would know how soul shattering it can be to lose someone so close to you. It had happened to Chloe too many times but…no longer as Max made a promise to herself, to the world and to whoever may be listening that Chloe would never be alone again!

Max stood in the middle of the living room and gazed upon the decorations. Tinsel, fake snow and many many other random Christmas themed objects littered the entire front area of the house and it all literally sparkled! Max was actually so proud of their hard work that Chloe had to rip her camera away from her before she spent all day capturing the Christmas explosion although even Chloe had to admit, it looked pretty damn awesome even if Joyce, David and Max had collectively band Chloe's custom punk themed decorations. Probably because a picture of a reindeer sticking its horns into Santa's stomach and subsequently puking out presents would probably ruin the mood a little.

As Chloe and Joyce prepared the food and Max and David finished up on the hallway lights, the first guests knocked on the door! Max handed David the last of the lights and raced to the door and opened it, only to be greeted by a beautifully wrapped box being shoved in her face.

"Merry Christmas Max and God bless you!" beamed Kate Marsh.

"Wow thanks Kate this looks awesome, why don't you head on inside okay?" replied Max, happily taking the gift from the smiling girl in front of her. Kate had decided to wear a cute little Christmas sweater with a graphic of a cross covered in snow in the middle of it. As she walked in, Kate smiled even sweeter and led in her girlfriend who looked entirely more awkward than she did. Victoria Chase was clad in a similarly festive outfit but, as you could imagine from a Chase, allot more expensive looking with pearls and other jewellery adorning her entire upper half. Victoria smiled sheepishly at the young hipster and handed over a wrapped gift of her own and stood awkwardly for a second before breaking the silence,

"I was going to bring some nice wine but I didn't want to make Kate feel uneasy because of…" she paused, looking a little sad before changing the subject,

"Anyway thanks…you know for inviting me. My folks are at an art exhibition until tomorrow and I wanted to spend Christmas with Kate anyway. I even bought something for Price shockingly enough" explained Victoria. Chloe, who had just heard the comment, poked her head around the kitchen wall and jokingly stuck her middle finger up at the former queen bee of Blackwell before winking and returning to her cooking. Victoria couldn't help but release a chuckle and took Kate's hand and wondered into the living room.

After a few general greetings and introductions, the group gathered in the living room to wait for the others to arrive. Surprisingly it didn't start to awkwardly with everyone, even Victoria and David, joining in the conversations. After a few inappropriate jokes from Chloe, the discussions died down a little before Kate looked over to David. Kate hadn't seen the former security guard in months and she admit she was actually glad to see him. The bandages on his head had long since come off but there was still visible scares and scratches remaining from the injury he sustained saving Kate and her families lives. Kate remembered being almost frightened of the large man and his threatening and bullying nature but something had clearly changed with him as he was smiling and laughing with his family and was actually getting on with Chloe, besides a few jestful insults between them. After David had gotten up to check on the food, Kate decided to talk to the big man. She gave her girlfriend a quick hug and excused herself so she could meet with David in the kitchen. She found him, gathering a few plates and setting them down on the counter before stopping dead upon seeing Kate.

"Uhh hello Miss Marsh. Everything…going okay?" he asked nervously. Kate could tell he still felt guilty over the events that took place in October, about being part of what pushed her onto that roof and leaving the door unlocked. Kate had forgiven David long before he had risked his own life to save her family but now felt a little guilty herself over judging the man before getting to know him although he did give her reason to be intimidated by him.

"Hey Mr. Madsen, I'm doing good. I just wanted to say…thanks for everything. I probably wouldn't be here if it weren't for you that night" she explained. David placed down the plates and looked directly into Kate Marsh' eyes. It wasn't easy for the soldier to show feelings, much like his step-daughter in many ways but at this point, he clearly showed remorse.

"I should have helped you long ago Miss Marsh rather than being a bully like I was. I hope someday…you might forgive me for what I did. I know it…aint easy for me to forgive myself" he said, practically whispering.

Kate paused for a moment and then brought David into a hug. David, initially surprised, smiled and returned it awkwardly. After another moment, Kate looked at David, her eyes full of emotion and stated,

"I forgave you long ago and I'm actually happier now than I used to be, me and Victoria have come so far and so have you. There was this saying back in Blackwell about being an everyday hero and… you are one too Mr. Madsen" smiled Kate who then wandered back to her girlfriend leaving a stunned and emotional David.

Not long after that, Alyssa, Brooke and Daniel turned up at the house. Brooke informed Max that Warren could not attend due to his parents feeling uneasy about their son returning to the place that caused their son to lose his leg. Max understood and promised to call him later. Max actually missed her old friend from Blackwell. The young photographer knew she also had to call her friends from Seattle, Kristen and Fernando, and wish them happy holidays also which she was looking forward to after not seeing them for so long. Even a few of Chloe's old friends turned up, a pretty looking girl called Steph and a slightly nerdy looking, but still kind of cute, guy called Mikey. Chloe clearly hadn't seen them in a while but they seemed to know eachother quite well, even talking about Rachel and what happened to Arcadia Bay briefly.

Now with everyone together at the Price-Madsen house, the party was in full swing as the food was served and the music turned up load. Chloe insisted that if she had to listen to sappy Christmas songs all day then she deserved at least one of her songs on the playlist so after the calming and catchy tune of 'Jingle Bell Rock', everyone's ears were greeted with the fiery death-tune of a song by Firewalk. Max was more than happy to listen to it as even though it wasn't really her type of music, she knew it meant something personal to her fiancé as it was one of her and Rachel's favourite band. Soon after the food had been picked clean and after Alyssa narrowly avoided getting hit in the head by a falling reindeer decoration, it was time for the gift exchange!

Joyce insisted Max and Chloe open their present first from her and David. After squeezing past the many people that now inhabited the floor, Chloe found the small parcel under the makeshift tree and tore the wrapping of but waited for her Max before opening the parcel. Two objects were inside! One was a sparkling blue pendant with the words ' _You've always been family Max_ ' engraved on the back of it.

"This is so amazing guys thank you! I can't thank you enough for everything you've done for me" proclaimed Max, tearfully hugging Joyce and David.

"No thanks necessary Max, you just take care of my daughter and keep her out of trouble" ordered Joyce jokingly.

Meanwhile Chloe was speechless. Her gift was a CD but to Chloe, it was a memory. Years before William died, he had created this CD with his daughter with his and her favourite songs that they used to love listening to together in their adventurous car rides. After he died and Chloe become the punk everyone loved, she thought she lost it and felt guilty ever since but…here it was in front of her and she felt the urge to break down there and then before her mother gently put her hand on Chloe's shoulders,

"Your father loved that CD, always went on about it night and day after ya'll listened to it. He may not be here now but I know something for dammed sure…wherever he is, he is so proud of you Chloe Price and so am I!" Joyce proudly stated. Not giving a fuck about who saw, Chloe let out the tears and hugged her mother lovingly. She didn't need to say anything, Joyce knew what her daughter was thinking and they remained in that hug for a fair while before finally splitting apart to get on with the rest of the exchange.

Kate and Victoria had bought Max a bunch of Photography books and supplies as well as a small white teddy bear with ' _Guardian Angel_ ' embraided on it's stomach which Max could tell was a personal touch from Kate. Chloe also received a brand new blue beanie and several coupons to a rock brand she liked from Kate as well as a huge poster that mimicked the 'Breaking Bad' style periodic table however all letters were removed except ' _fluorine uranium carbon potassium uranium_ ' from Victoria. Apparently, it was some sort of inside joke between the punk and Victoria who both laughed and even fist bumped about it.

Alyssa had very kindly bought a nice bottle of expensive Scotch for everyone to enjoy, mostly Chloe and David, and Brooke had gifted Max a small drone, similar to the one Brooke owned back in Blackwell but wasn't nearly as hi-tech and expensive. Steph and Mikey had given Chloe a custom D&D set and all three collectively yelled 'CALAMASTIA RULES!'. Max remembered when she and Chloe used to play that all the time as kids and was surprised Chloe was still into it but her she had to admit, her inner geek was loving that gift.

Due to the cost of saving up for the wedding, Max and Chloe wasn't able to get much for everyone but they had clubbed together to purchase a nice leather bound bible for Kate, a pretty necklace and some diapers (Chloe's idea) for Victoria, a few chick lit books for Alyssa, science equipment and comic books for Brooke and Warren, a hat with 'NERD' written on it and a shirt that reads 'I love girls and Shakespeare' for Mikey and Steph as well as a very big and posh bottle of wine for David and Joyce but…that wasn't everything!

Chloe had been on her own mission. She spent a little bit more of her money on two very special picture frames and put two very special pictures inside them. She walked over to her mother and David and handed them each a picture frame upside down.

"Before you look at these, let me just say…thanks for everything. Mom no matter what I love you, even when you nag me all the time and David, as much as I'm scared your mustache will literally jump out and attack me sometimes, you're not that much of a douche anymore and I appreciate it allot man so…here you are" proclaimed Chloe. Joyce turned her frame over and gazed at the picture of her and William together, arm in arm and smiling lovingly at the camera. Tears came rushing to her eyes but she wasn't the only one. David couldn't resist the tears either as he looked at the photo of him and his old pal Phil Becker during their second tour. Phil had sadly died years ago and it was one of the reasons David had been so distraught and hardened after he came home after that tour. He looked up at his step-daughter smiling and the Price-Madsen family all went into a warm embrace. After this action, nearly everyone in the room had also joined in the happy tear fest.

After the emotional roller-coaster had finished, Max and Chloe quietly snuck away from the party and participated in a party of their own. They knew they couldn't be too long but they enjoyed eachothers warmth and love at the bottom of the stairs. The two lovers were probably there for around half an hour kissing and snogging and just generally loving eachother. Max finally took Chloe's hand in hers and looked directly into her beautiful transfixing blue eyes.

"You know we still haven't given eachother our gifts yet Chlo" said Max slightly seductively,

"Well Maxi-pad, I'm sure we can work something out when everyone's gone and we're alone. Seriously though, I love you so much Max and I know we'll be together forever and I don't even give a shit how mushy that was. Merry Christmas Max Caulfield!"  
"Merry Christmas Chloe Price" Max returned before leaning in to give Chloe yet another display of passion before…

…a knock at the door.

Max looked at Chloe with a confused expression on her face. They weren't expecting anyone and it was getting very late. It was unusual for anyone to be out after dark due to the debris and hazards that were still around thanks to the storm. Chloe shrugged as Max made her way to the door and pulled it open with a curious expression still on her face when she made eye contact with someone she did not expect to ever see again.

The woman who had knocked wore a dirty and slightly battered overcoat on and her hair seemed to match her outfit. She smiled at both Max and Chloe.

"Well hello there…Max was it?" she asked, her voice slightly rougher than Max remembered. Chloe looked at Max confusingly as the young hipster was still surprised to see the Homeless Lady she had met and bonded with who lived behind the Two Whales diner before the storm. What she said next peaked Max's curiosity even more…

"Merry Christmas to you both and I believe…I have some very interesting things to tell you…"

 **Merry Christmas and happy holidays to you all! The next chapter will be out** _ **January 2nd**_ **and will not follow a regular update pattern every following Tuesday! That's a promise this time aha**


	34. Chapter THIRTY-FOUR: Life and Death

**Chapter THIRTY-FOUR: Life and Death**

There is a theory…a theory about life and death!

The theory states that death is relative and that life will always continue, in some form or another, after the human perception of 'death'. For example; a life could continue in the form of a memory, keeping that person alive constantly in the minds of those who share that particular memory.

A photograph could be used to, in a sense, store that memory and therefor…store that life in one single still image as every time you look upon that photo, that person is instantly brought back to life in your head.

Melissa Lee Grayson once believed in that theory, back then that was her name of course. She gave up that name years ago when her asshole of a husband cheated her out of her savings then promptly ran off to God-knows where!

It was the 22cnd of March, 1997 when she had officially disappeared. She had lost her home, her savings and made many dumb mistakes before landing herself on the street and eventually, after more mistakes, took up residence outside of the Two Whales Diner in misty old Arcadia Bay. It suited her to be around familiar surroundings. She had even seen missing person posters with her very name on it but she had changed so much since the picture on the poster was taken that nobody recognised her, she had the years of living rough to thank for that luxury!

Through the years that followed her relocation to the dusty streets of Arcadia Bay, Melissa Lee Grayson had almost given up hope several times and was on the brink of it again before meeting the lovely Joyce Price. Joyce had been an angel and, as she worked at the diner, brought her food and company regularly when most people wouldn't even glance in her direction. After this display of affection, she had finally realised that even though she was technically homeless, Arcadia Bay was her real home!

Then she met Maxine Caulfield!

The young photographer who preferred to be called 'Max' had talked to her and Melissa could feel the weight of the world on that young girl's shoulders. She had asked Joyce about her soon after they talked first and the waitress had explained her connection to her own daughter, Chloe Price.

The young Max had also given her the knowledge of her visions of a tornado that would somehow destroy Arcadia Bay and she had listened! Not long after their second conversation, she had made herself scarce and then…it had actually happened. The storm had blitzed through the small seaside town and had taken many lives with it on its destructive journey to the point where the town had become unrecognisable. After the storm, Melissa Lee Grayson had wondered for a while before returning to her home, months after it's apparent destruction. Now, she wanted to take care of those who had taken care of her and tracked down the Price household. Many moons ago, Joyce had given her the address of her home, saying that if she wished to come for a nice meal then was welcome too. Melissa decided it was not a god idea as she still remembered her own family history. She had found the house amongst the wreckage of the town and she was surprised to see it was still standing and pretty much intact. Melissa Lee Grayson then proceeded to knock on the door to the house only to be greeted by both Chloe Price and the young Max Caulfield who she greeted happily and wished them both happy holidays, it was Christmas after all.

Melissa knew she had to be quick with her advice and information as she needed to be somewhere very soon, her journey was yet to be over and where she needed to be…well, she couldn't be late!

"Merry Christmas to you both and I believe…I have some very interesting things to tell you…" she proclaimed, her voice sound rougher than it had been since the last she had spoken with Max thanks to her interesting travels of late.

Max and Chloe both looked at eachother, each with their own degree of confusion. Max finally looked up at Melissa, her eyes slightly wide with surprise. Melissa could tell that the young woman had not expected to her so soon, possible ever again. The young photographer cleared her throat and finally spoke, once again her youth shining in her tone of voice,

"Uhh…hi. I didn't expect to see you again after…well you guess. It's nice to see you again though. Chloe this…well I actually don't know honestly but we met outside the diner back in October" explained Max. Melissa studied Chloe Price for a second. She looked the same since she last saw her but this time, she seemed happier in the way that she stood and in the way she spoke as well,

"Hey, I'm Chloe. I think I remember you, my mom used to bring you food right? I think my friend Rachel talked to you once" introduced Chloe who stuck her hand out. Melissa happily accepted the hand shake and noticed the time on her old watch…she didn't have too long.

"Your mother was my guardian angel, always talking to me when she had the chance. Anyway, I'm sure you don't want to hear an old woman ramble on at you so I'll be quick…I have something to show you Max" she announced and dug her hand in her trouser pocket. At this point both Max and Chloe still had a look of confusion on their faces as Melissa took out a small and wrinkled old photo and handed it over to Max.

Max gazed at the photo for a few seconds in silence and made a few observations; the photo was of the Homeless Women's family and it was from a long time ago. She saw the woman but years younger and much more healthier looking, standing next to a tall well dressed man, both standing arm in arm with huge smiles on their faces. Behind them both was a congregation of around ten or so people who all appeared to be cheering and shouting something. It was a weeding! The Homeless Women's wedding!

"Is this your…" began Max  
"My wedding? Yes, it is. Although I hate that man now and I don't see my family anymore…it was still a great day. A day before the Prescott's. A day before everything else went to shit. I used to wish I could just…go back to that day, just to relive it one more time." explained Melissa.

Max Caulfield could see a single tear forming in the women's eyes. She didn't even know this lady really, not even her name but she couldn't help but trust her and feel sorry for her. Chloe felt the same way and looked warmly at the stranger in front of her. Chloe never trusted anyone besides a very select few and yet somehow, she saw something in this woman's eyes. Something weirdly deep. Max looked at the photo again and smiled back at the woman. She could tell it was important to her and wondered why she would give this to someone she barely even knew,

"This must mean allot to you but, why show me this? Why now?" asked Max. The woman looked up and blinked away the tears and smiled at the young hipster,

"Well Max, because you gave me a warning about something you couldn't have know would happen. Something impossible. This photo is a gift. A thank you for saving my sorry ass and…to say that IT wasn't your fault" said the woman.

Max was about to thank the women before realising what she had said at the end of her sentence. She and Chloe once again exchanged a look of confusion before turning their attention back to the woman in front of them.

"What do you mean? What wasn't my fault?" asked Max. The woman simply smiled again and looked back down to her watch. Max didn't see the watch on the woman's wrist before so she figured she must of gotten it sometime after the storm. The woman cleared her throat before uttering some words that both Max and Chloe would never forget…

"The storm was not your fault. No matter how much you blame yourself and no matter what you think caused that damn storm, I wanted you to know it was not your fault" she explained. The confused expression on Max and Chloe's faces had now morphed into one of shock and bewilderment.

 _How could she know that?_

 _Did she know about the rewind?_

 _What the fuck is going on?_

A thousand questions burned through the minds of Max and Chloe as they stared in pure disbelief before the woman spoke up again,

"I told you I've lived here for a thousand years Max. You'll find that any life can live on with the use of a simple memory and a photograph. Now I have to be off but thanks once again for the warning Max and…say hello to Joyce for me" she said, clearer than Max had ever heard her before.

Melissa Lee Grayson checked her watch once again. It was time and she was ready for it.

Before Max or Chloe could say anything else, they were interrupted by the voice of Joyce Price calling from the living room,

"Chloe…Max, who is that at the door?" shouted Joyce. Max and Chloe turned around in unison and Chloe replied,

"Uhhh, it's some old friend of Max's mom don't worry" she said. Max, who was now shacking slightly turned around, now determined to get answers. She was met with an empty doorway. Chloe and Max immediately looked straight at eachother.

"What. The. Actual. Fuck!" proclaimed Chloe, staring in shock. Max simply shook her head slightly and sighed. She didn't know what the fuck that was but somehow…she was happy. That woman, that strange strange woman had just told her that the storm which haunted her memories like a howling ghost had not been her doing. Somehow and she never really knew why, Max actually believed her.

In years to come, Max Caulfield would think about that strange Christmas and that homeless lady. She would ask herself who she was and what she wanted but every time she asked herself that, every time she interrogated her common sense for answers…it always came down to one conclusion….

…life is just pure and simply strange!

 **Sorry if that one seemed a little jumpy, I wasn't happy with the previous final project and took out a bunch of stuff and replaced it. I left allot about the homeless lady deliberately open form speculation and you can make up your own minds on what or who you think she is** **Happy new year everyone and see you next** **Tuesday!**


	35. Chapter THIRTY-FIVE: Only the good

**Chapter THIRTY-FIVE: Only the good…**

 **Wowsers, thank you so much for 10,000 views it is so incredible for me! You are all so awesome!**

Alfred Hitchcock once referred to photographs as 'little pieces of time'. If somebody took a photo of you at birth and then again at death, the very beginning and end of your life would be captured in two little pieces of time forever, at least until it fades and crumples with age. In-between the first breath at birth and the last at death, life is filled with countless adventures and experiences both good and bad. Some photographers want to capture all of these moments, every single event of trial and triumph for a variety of reasons. Max Caulfield wants to capture these moments so that, at the end of her life, she can prove that there are more good moments than bad and so she can remember the best parts of her existence whilst also acknowledging the bad. She wants to study the contrast of emotions on her face and compare them to the changing of scenery and the wash of vibrant colours on the polaroid. Max often dreamt of visiting an active volcano when it's about to burst and have a photo taken of her standing in front of the eruption so she could investigate the contrast between the probable scared-to-shit look on her face with the bright and angry backdrop. She wished she could take a picture of her soon to be wife, with her beautiful blue hair and eyes, standing bellow the northern lights and compare each beauty to the other, with Chloe Price being the obvious winner.

One day she will get around to doing all of that but for now, she was quite happy with half kneeling on the hard-concrete floor, aiming her trusty camera at the love of her life who was currently attempting a handstand. She was also more than happy to capture the moment Chloe Price fell over and landed with a large thud in a dirty puddle, splashing murky water in ever direction.

"Hey, watch the camera Chloe, it won't work if it gets too wet" Max complained, inspecting her camera for any impact from the dirty water.

Chloe launched herself up and casually strolled over to her fiancé. It was her idea to come to the carpark by the beech, where they had once met her old dealer Frank Bowers to get information about his clients. Chloe wanted to go there on their way back from a shopping trip to just screw around and chill on the actual beach but thanks to the recent rain, that wasn't going to happen unless she wanted to eat wet sand for dinner. Max had insisted they stay so she could land a few photo opportunities and Chloe had amused herself by flirting with Max, graffitiing a sign, performing makeshift stunts such as her failed handstand and…more flirting. Just as Max couldn't pass up a chance to take a photo, Chloe couldn't pass up the chance to make a dirty joke to her fiancé for a guaranteed blush,

"You know what Maxi-pad, that reminds me of someone I know but it takes allot of wetness for her to stop working" winked Chloe. Sure enough, a bright red blush made it's way to the young photographer's face followed by an awkward chuckle and shove that somehow morphed into a huge kiss to Chloe.

"You are such a dork Chloe Price" retaliated Max,  
"I know but you totally love it" laughed Chloe, again winking at Max.

It was now mid-February and nearly two months since Max and Chloe's weird encounter with the Homeless Women. The two had attempted to rationalise what had happened but gave after the fourth coffee. Whatever it was, Chloe was so glad it had happened as ever since that strange encounter, Max had become much happier and energetic. She didn't shake as much when looking at the wreckage of Arcadia Bay, although she still looked away and occasionally would tear up but it had gotten so much better. Max now actively left the house to look for photo opportunities and often came back with her bag full of them. It was refreshing for Chloe to see Max like that and made her happier than ever in return.

"I thought us getting married in six months' time was a clear sign that I love you to pieces Chloe" mused Max. The pair had finally got around to planning their actual wedding and although they both nearly fainted with shock at the cost, they knew it was more than worth it!

"I don't know about that, I thought you were only marrying my sorry ass because I look so smokin' hot" joked Chloe,  
"Well I can't disagree with you there, anyway we should get back to the house so I can put these photo's up on the wall" explained Max. Chloe nodded and after making one last attempt to dry herself off, she followed Max to her trusty truck and drove off to their home.

The once decimated roads of Arcadia Bay had transformed into something that was actually drivable, although it was difficult still. It had turned from treacherous to traversable thanks to the efforts of the surviving residents of Arcadia Bay as well as outside support and surprise funding from the Prescott's. The town was starting to resemble only a partially destroyed town now and Chloe Price found herself actually glad which was a supreme shock to her considering she wanted to turn it into glass and smash it only four months ago. Everything had changed in the last four months and Chloe knew it was going to change allot more in the future. Max had requested they drive the long war round so they could avoid the wreck of the ruined Two Whales Diner which still made her feel uneasy whenever she saw it and Chloe couldn't blame her, after everything that happened in October.

"Hey Max, do you mind if I turn the radio on?" asked Chloe.  
"Sure go ahead, but please no screamo…they sound like zombies in pain" replied Max. Chloe laughed at this and poked around before finding the perfect song to put on and stuck it in the stereo.

Max was surprised when her ears weren't greeted with heavy metal but the soft turns of a country song. Chloe normally hated country songs.

"Didn't you say you wanted to burn every banjo in the world? You hate country" said Max curiously. Chloe smiled as she actually remembered saying that shit and it was true, she hated country normally but this one…this meant something to her,

"Heh, I totally did say that but…this one is kinda important. It's called Midnight Oil, me and my dad used to listen to it a bunch. I found a copy of it and I listen to it sometimes. I…still miss him Max. I feel so shitty when I think that when we get married he won't be there. I'll have my step-father, my father-in-law but…not my actual father there" explained Chloe sadly. Max carefully placed her hand on Chloe's and held it for a moment, letting her know that she was there for her always.

"I'm so sorry Chloe, I wish William could be there too but I do know something Chlo, he would be so proud of you right now like I am and I always will be Chloe I promise" stated Max. Chloe found herself smiling and leant over to kiss Max on the cheek.

It came out of nowhere….

Suddenly….

The first thing Max felt was pressure and she heard a large bang at the front of the truck. Suddenly the entire car was spinning and bumping before coming to a sudden and painful halt onto a broken wooden lamppost. What neither Chloe or Max saw was the four-door red car, who had been speeding down the left turning of the crossroads they had just driven up to and had only just impacted. It had sent the car spinning for a moment before coming to a rest suddenly on a nearby lamppost. Max couldn't feel much but she could feel pain…sharp and dull pain together, performing a duo of torture on her body. She felt her eyes get heavier and heavier…deeper and deeper. She desperately tried to say Chloe's name, desperately trying to find out if she was okay before loosing to the pull of unconsciousness.

The last thing she saw before her eyes shut and her thoughts became distant was Chloe Price, who was slumped over the steering wheel.

Was she okay?

Was she alive?

Unconsciousness finally took over and the image of Chloe was replaced with blackness….


	36. Chapter THIRTY-SIX: Never the evil

**Chapter THIRTY-SIX: Never the evil…**

 **This was one of my favourite chapters to write** **Hope you enjoy!**

A dim shard of white light came into view. In the distance…or was it close? Chloe Price couldn't tell. The only thing she could tell was that she was surrounded by a deep black void of nothingness with only that one glimpse of light in what seemed like an eternity of silent darkness. Se couldn't blink or talk or even kook around, she was just frozen in place with only her thoughts. When she tried to steady herself mentally and try to ignore her surroundings…a name popped into her head….

… _Max._

… _Max._

 _..MAX!_

That name seemed to launch a barrage of activity in Chloe's mind as the light seemed slightly brighter now.

 _What the hell happened?_

 _Where the fuck is Max?_

 _She better be okay!_

The questions raced through her mind as her internal freak-out spiralled. Chloe tried so desperately to move or do something…anything to make sure her fiancé was okay. All she could think about now was that petit hipster girl whom she fell in love with, who she played pirates with as a kid, who spilled some wine and stained the living room carpet…the girl she loved. The light was even brighter now and it was practically burning, roaring with the fires of Chloe's rage!

' _Fuck you if you think you can take something else from me! I am NOT going to lose someone else!'_

Chloe Price was internally shouting now, raging and screaming. She couldn't really remember what happened but she knew she was in some sort of accident while driving. She remembered listening to Midnight Oil in her beaten-up truck with Max riding shotgun. None of that mattered at that moment, all that did matter was making sure Max Caulfield was alive and safe.

Chloe threw all other thoughts away as she focussed on waking up from whatever nightmare state we was imprisoned in. Memories of happier times came flooding into Chloe's mind as if something were willing her on to escape, pushing her mind to the limit. She remembered playing in the back garden with silly plastic swords and nearly pocking Max' eye out. She also remembered when she and Max knocked over the barbeque and almost set the entire house on fire. All those experiences fuelled Chloe as she focussed on Max and the blinding light in front of her…. then she remembered something else.

The day her father never came home. The day her life went to complete shit. The day everything came crashing down around her.

' _NO FUCKING WAY! NOT AGAIN….FUCK YOU!'_ she bellowed to no one. If there was such thing as Heaven and Hell or even Purgatory, they were probably fighting over who would be stuck with her at that moment. She was screaming so hard even Satan himself would've probably shit himself in fear.

Suddenly the light had surrounded her, ready to engulf her completely. That last memory had fuelled her, made her get off her ass and wake up. Chloe Price was about to bust out of that dark void of…fuckness and she wanted only one thing when she got out….she only wanted to see one face, one perfect nerdy beautiful smile and that was…

"MAX!"

Her sudden and loud shout made herself jump. Chloe looked around desperately. She expected to see only darkness but instead, her eyes were met with a brightly lit room with an open window at the far side. There was a throbbing pain in her head as if a bull had danced the tango directly on her forehead but she ignored it. Chloe blinked several times a second as she look around in pure confusion. She was lying down in a soft bed with a blue quilt on top of her. The room was simple and bland yet strangely calming but nothing about Chloe Price was calm right now. She attempted to get out of the bed as she needed to see Max, needed to make sure she was okay and if not…beat the ever living shit fucks out of the person who got them into this situation. Upon sticking her foot out and partially lifting herself up, she was met with a sharp pain in her head and lower body. The pain was screaming at her but she didn't care, she needed to see Max at any cost. The door to her room burst open and a familiar face came rushing over to her side,

"Oh my Lord, I'm so glad you're awake darlin'" said Joyce Price, her soothing voice dampening the fire of Chloe's rage slightly. Chloe could tell without looking that her mom had been crying and upon looking at her, she could tell Joyce had been incredibly worried as her face was sunken and her hair a mess. Chloe stopped her own tears as she ignored her mother and carried on trying to leave the bed only to be met with the warm touch of Joyce, gently pushing her back into bed,

"Chloe you have to rest, the nurse will be back any minute and you'll hurt yourself trying to get up" insisted Joyce. Chloe couldn't care less and still tried to get up and make it to the door. She managed to get halfway stood up before falling straight back down onto the bed, with Joyce steadying her and comforting her. Chloe was determined and she needed to see Max but the pain was too much and she reluctantly allowed her mother to position her back into bed. Once she back into bed, she finally looked into Joyce' eyes and couldn't hold in the tears as she practically broke down there and then. Finally managing to control herself slightly, Chloe asked the question she needed the answer too if she was going to even bother to think about possibly getting some rest…

"Mom…where is Max? Is she okay? I need to know mom right fucking now!" Chloe emotionally demanded. A slight smile appeared on Joyce's face as she wiped away her tears and placed her hand on Chloe's shoulder,

"Chloe…Max is okay or she will be anyway. You were in an accident honey, a driver was speeding and hit your truck but it only clipped it but it did send you spinning. The doctor will tell you more but you hut your head on the steering wheel and we were all scared it was going to bad but thank God it wasn't. Max hit her head on the back of the truck and got some pretty bad bruising on her stomach area. She's unconscious like you were but she will be okay darlin', it just might be a little while for her to wake up" explained Joyce.

A thousand thoughts flowed through Chloe's brain, which only served to make the pain in her head grow making her wince. Above everything, Chloe was so glad for one thing; Max Caulfield was alive and was going to be okay! That one single thought gave her something she had thought she would never get back after her dad died, something that she used to say was a killer and would spit at the idea of ever having it…that thought gave her hope!

"Mom I…I thought I lost her. I can't lose anything else! Not Max, you…David, hell even Victoria! I would break without Max, shatter to a million fucking pieces. I can't go through that again" admitted Chloe, fully forgetting her punk persona as she cried openly and loudly to her mother. Joyce bent down and placed a kiss on Chloe's cheek and took her daughter's hand in hers,

"Oh Chloe, you won't! I'm not leaving you and nor is David. You should've seen him. When we heard from the hospital that you and Max were hurt, he was out of the house and into the car before I stepped outside the room. I cried all the way here just hoping you would be okay and I'm so glad you are" said Joyce, her voice crackling but still loving and warm. Chloe finally smiled and chuckled slightly at the story about David. After everything recently, Chloe was still surprised that David gave a damn.

A tall bald man and a small cute nurse walked through the open door and smiled at Chloe as the man, who appeared to be the Doctor, wondered over and checked the clipboard at the end of her bed. He then proceeded to check a few things and drew her attention to Chloe,

"Hey there Miss Price, feeling okay? We weren't expecting you up so soon" mused the doctor. Chloe was till processing everything when he asked this but decided to put her worries to the back of her mind, the news that Max would be okay was still fuelling her to smile and not completely freak out!

"Well Doc, I won't be joining any most pits any time soon and my head is fried but other than that I'm A-Okay. What about Max Caulfield, when will she be awake?" pressed Chloe.

"Miss Caulfield is stable and we expect her to make a full recover but we aren't sure when she'll wake up but it won't be too long. I'd say she'll be with us in a few hours maybe more but we can't be sure. You two were very lucky" explained the Doctor. He then returned the clipboard, spoke to the nurse about monitoring Chloe and left the room.

Joyce was about to leave with the Doctor but Chloe stopped her,

"Can you…maybe stay? I kinda don't want to be alone right now" asked Chloe. Joyce immediately sat back down on the chair nearby the bed and placed hand on her Chloe's once more,

"Of course, Chloe. I'm never leaving you honey" said Joyce as the door to the room again opened…

"That makes two of us" said a deep voice that could only originate from David Madsen and it actually made Chloe smile and even slightly tear up. She was with her mother and her step-father and she was actually glad, the old Chloe would have preferred the company of a monkey that wasn't house trained but she had changed and so had allot of people since the storm.

' _Thank you…whoever it is out there…thank you for making sure my Max is okay!'_ Chloe thought to herself. David took a seat next to his wife and all three were together as a quite breeze flew in from the open window…


	37. Chapter THIRTY-SEVEN: Black VS Blue

**Chapter THIRTY-SEVEN: Black VS Blue**

Mark Jefferson grinned from ear to ear as he slowly approached his captive…his subject. He looked upon the girl tied up tightly on the chair and he didn't see a young girl who would die alone and afraid soon, he saw the future of photography and his legacy. Even though the young woman had only just regained consciousness and was only beginning to comprehend her situation, Mark could already see the change he so desperately wanted to capture. The fortress of innocence was already beginning to crumble and weaken as the fear took hold of her and Mark would make sure it wouldn't let go. This was going to be _easy_! This was going to be _fun_!

Mark Jefferson loved the sound of his camera especially within the confines of his dark room. He adored the precious moments after the picture was taken also as it represented a victory for him, that he had got what he wanted and he could now look forward to studying the finished product and gaze upon that all too precious moment when the innocence of his subject evolved into corruption…the moment when black turned to white and then to grey. Normally he wouldn't spend all that long with his models as he was eager to move on and recapture that precious moment on someone else but there was something different about the girl in front of him…an intense beauty that was buried under the strain of innocence and purity so he felt pride as he would be the one who would take away that purity and allow the true beauty of this girl to take shape…the true beauty of Chloe Elizabeth Price!

A memory of similar beings came into his mind as he continued his session. All of those faux-punk sluts dancing around and being to bitchy for their own good but that was exactly the point Mark Jefferson had missed…he had been so busy focussing on the outside beauty of the girls from Blackwell that he completely ignored the invisible aura that girls like Chloe Price carried around. This was his new mission, to capture the evolution of innocence to corruption from within, the change from black to white to grey from within their souls! It was perfect yet ambitious, it meant starting a whole new binder of subjects and research and this would be difficult but he was reminded of his famous saying that doubled as his way of life…always take the shot!

A thought occurred to Jefferson as he took another photo from a low angle of the blue haired punk. He didn't need this one anymore, she was only the beginning! He had already buried her late partner, that intolerable Max Caulfield, so why shouldn't he just do the same with Chloe so he could truly start fresh with his new ambition. He decided in that one single instant that he would kill her, end her life and her suffering. The gun had been placed on the desk behind him and it only took a minute to collect the weapon, load it and aim. He wasn't too fond of guns, they were simple and barbaric at the best of times but his work needed to be done and Chloe Price was not part of his work anymore. Mark couldn't help but smile as the look on Chloe's face turned from fear to anger and then finally to acceptance. It felt good to see the look of intense fear on the face of someone who was infamous for being tough and loud, it was strangely ironic that she would die silent and alone in his dark room and no one would even know about it. Mark smiled once more as he aimed the pistol at Chloe's head and uttered the final words she would ever hear…

"It's time to wake up…" and then without another thought or sound there was a loud bang and everything went silent…

"CHLOE!" yelled Max as she shot up. Her surroundings were blurry and her head was pounding. Tears had made their way down her face and her lips were extremely dry. She blinked a hundred times a minute as she tried to focus on her location and was surprised to see that she was in some sort of hospital room. Sweat was pouring down from her forehead as she signed in great relief.

She had been dreaming!

A horrible disgusting dream but still thankfully a dream. The room was still spinning around her as a Doctor burst in and attempted to calm Max down. She felt sick and actually scared after what had just happened, she even had to take a moment to convince herself that she hadn't just seen the future again like she had done months ago before the storm. Max reached out her hand and surely enough nothing happened…her power was still gone and she was all the more better without it! All those terrible thoughts about Jefferson still lingered in her mind as if she had been there and it made her feel sick to her stomach, so much so that she had to the bathroom to throw up which wasn't east at all considering she was in intense pain and she had just woken up. The Doctor had explained to her that she only had minor fractures and a nearly broken leg plus a gigantic bruise on the back of her head that she was lucky it wasn't too serious as it could have easily been so much worse. The worst part was the bruising on her stomach area that hurt like hell when she threw up. It wasn't serious but would hurt for a good month or so and would be sore long after but Max wasn't really that concerned with any of this, all she cared about was Chloe! The events of her nightmare still horrified her and this coupled with the accidence made her worry so much to the point of tears. Thankfully Joyce had been the one to tell Max that Chloe was fine, despite her complaining and foul language when she was pissed.

"Thanks for telling me Joyce. I'm so glad Chloe is okay but I need to see her" Max practically begged. Her voice had been rough and she had to constantly stop in between words thanks to the pain in her stomach. She had been given painkillers but they had only served to make the pain angry and force it to lash out even more!

"You can see her in a little while, you both are still in observation and you need your rest. I know you're about as stubborn as a thick tree but you are also a very smart young woman and you know you have to get some rest. Only for a little while and then maybe Chloe can come and see you later in the day okay" compromised Joyce. It was clear that the older woman had been crying recently but the energy in her voice told Max that she was given good news, probably regarding the health of her daughter. Max wanted to make a case that she needed Chloe to get better, she wanted to bust the damn door down and run to the love of her life but Joyce was right, she did need her rest and so did Chloe.

The rest of that day went on slow but pretty much okay, besides the intense pain Max was forced to endure. The remnants of her nightmare still terrified her but she had one small comfort, it wasn't about the storm as whenever that crept its way into her dreams…she wouldn't be the same for a while after. It was getting very late and after a few checks from the Doctor and a couple of texts from Kate and the others, Max was left in the dark to get some proper sleep. Sleep wasn't going to happen and Max knew it. The pain in her stomach made for an excellent substitute for a hundred cups of coffee and every time she even attempted to get some much-needed rest, she would see the evil warped face of Mark Jefferson smiling at her like the creep he was. Max didn't like the idea of him still having power over her even now. That's why she never talked about him, not even to Chloe as she was determined not to let that man screw her up anymore than he already had done. Max would never let him win!

It had to have been around midnight when the door to her room slowly creaked open. The sudden gust of wind caused by the opening of the door startled Max immediately and she was scared to turn around as she was facing the windows. Whoever had invaded her room was slowly creeping towards her bed and Max could hear the silent tapping on the ground from the bare feet of whoever it was. Max shook slightly but closed her eyes for a moment, reassuring herself that no one bad could come into the hospital unknown to the staff so it had to be someone visiting her from inside the hospital itself. Suddenly a hand lightly grabbed Max's shoulder and she spun around ready to shout her head off to get some attention from anyone passing by if this person intended to harm her in some way however, it turned out to be a much better and more beautiful alternative…

Chloe Price smiled at her fiancé who looked up at her surprise,

"Hey there Max. You really didn't think I'd let you sleep without a goodnight grope from me right?" chuckled Chloe. Without a second thought or regard for the pain it would inevitably cause, Max jumped up with speed and brought Chloe into a hug. Chloe returned the hug instantly and the two lovers remained like this for several minutes before they each began to tear up. The events of the past day were unexpected and they were just so glad to be together again. It took a further minute for both Max and Chloe to realise that they were both causing eachother a great amount of pain from the hug so they backed out and simply settled for a round of tonsil tennis instead after which Chloe retired to the chair beside Max's bed.

"Chloe I'm so glad to see you but you should be resting and the Doctor will bust his nut if he knew you snuck over here and I don't want you hurting yourself because of me" insisted Max, still holding onto her fiancé's hand whilst lying in her bed.

"No amount of pain would ever stop me from seeing you Mad Max and besides, you could always kiss better the parts that hurt" Chloe winked, earning a genuine laugh and smile from Max.

"You're such a dork but I mean it, you need to go back to bed and get some sleep okay, I love you so much but I'd sleep better knowing you were okay. Do it for me okay?" asked Max. Chloe sighed and rested her head by Max's for a second before kissing her warmly on the cheek and reluctantly stood up to leave.

"I obey thy command Lady Max" joked Chloe before blow kissing in Max's direction,

"I love you so much, you big dork. Whatever happens I will see you tomorrow okay" Max explained.

"I love you to Max…always" beamed Chloe as she made her way out the door and back to her room. Max smiled and closed her eyes finally ready to begin the battle of trying to get some sleep. It only took a few minutes for Max to actually fall into a calm sleep, the appearance of the girl she loved the most had mad her feel more peaceful that ever before and the dark memories of Jefferson were replaced with the loving image of Chloe Price. Mark Jefferson, wherever he was now, had lost!


	38. Chapter THIRTY-EIGHT: Tempus

**Chapter THIRTY-EIGHT: Tempus**

 **So sorry for being late, some super annoying things came up! Thanks for sticking with me though!**

Boredom…

Complete and total fucking boredom!

Chloe Price had been stuck in this damn hospital for three whole days now as the Doctor, her resident torturer and sarcastic asswipe, decided to keep her in for some extra tests that actually turned out to be a waste of time as she was completely fine, medically speaking anyway. Apart from the immense pain of not seeing Max for a whole day, she was starting to suffer from the food she had been forced to consume which tasted like mouldy socks! Chloe missed her mother's cooking like hell and was looking forward to getting the fuck out at the end of the day and it wasn't soon enough.

Although she did love the pudding!

Apart from her mom and David, she didn't have many visitors although her old friend Steph dropped by and they ended up playing a small campaign on her custom D&D board. She wished she could see her fiancé today but she was busy with Joyce planning some wedding stuff and even though making lists and planning wasn't Chloe's speciality, she would give anything to be with them right now. The wedding will be the happiest day of her life and she couldn't be there to help plan the fucker! Still at least she'll be out in a few hours.

It was around mid-day when the Doctor stomped into Chloe's room with a clipboard in hand. His name was Dr. Song, which Cloe found absolutely hysterical and was a very thin man with greasy long grey hair and reminded Chloe of an older Mr. Keaton from Blackwell.

"Well Miss Price, almost time for you to go. I don't know how I'll cope without your presence here" said Dr. Song in his usual sarcastic voice. Chloe resisted the overwhelming urge to stand right up and kick the asshole onto his asshole but seceded to go with her signature snide remark instead,

"And I was staring to get used to seeing you every day Doc, you mind if I ask my fiancé to take a photo of you? I could use a new dartboard" sniggered Chloe. Dr. Song merely grunted and carried on writing on his clipboard. Although he was a dick, Chloe had to admit she was feeling allot better now as her bruising had subsided and the pain in her body had decreased allot. Chloe wasn't the most flattering of patients also and after three days of funky food and hardly any sleep, she was probably borderline feral.

After a few more hours of boredom and tests, Chloe was finally allowed to leave. As she strolled down the hall to the main reception, Chloe felt as though she were getting released from a seven year prison sentence and was ready to resume her outside life. Before turning the corner to the reception desk, she looked back at one of the rooms located near the end of the hallway. Chloe had allot of memories related to that specific hospital room and it made her shudder for a second. The memories of a young girl who was now long dead, fighting for her life from a stab wound came crashing into Chloe's mind as she closed her eyes and tried to think of a happier memory than pain and death. Shaking off the feeling of past dread, she headed to the reception desk and signed out before giving one final wave and middle finger to Dr. Song and wondered out to the car park.

It was a surprisingly warm day with a deep blue sky and refreshing breeze to compliment it. The only noises that could be heard was the sound of passing cars and birds singing their songs of joy as they went about their day. Chloe found herself leaning against a wall as she reached into her jacket pocket to locate a much needed cigarette only to find that she was completely out. She cursed out loud and threw the packet away in anger.

Suddenly a hand stretched out in front of her, brandishing a cigarette and a soft voice said,

"Need a smoke?" he asked. Chloe didn't recognise the man in front of her but he had to be a few years younger than her. He had slightly messed up brown hair with a very straight face and striking eyebrows. The guy had very deep green eyes that were almost hypnotic. After taking a second of surprise, Chloe nodded and accepted the beautiful object. The man offered her a light and she took it, lighting up the cigarette and taking a few puffs followed by a sigh of relief as she felt that warm feeling of a nice smoke.

"Thanks man. This is my favourite brand actually" admitted Chloe. The man smiled and made a small chuckle. He took out the whole packet and handed it over to Chloe.

"No problem, why don't you take the whole pack? I don't smoke that much anyway, I'm too young for this stuff anyway" he claimed. Chloe looked at the guy weirdly for a moment before shrugging and accepting his offer, swiping the pack from his hand and pocketing them.

"Thanks dude, these are way to expensive anyway. Why are you at this hospital anyway?" asked Chloe. She always felt awkward when talking to literally anyone in public and she was always weary of any guys or girls who just wanted to flirt and get her in bed but this guy actually seemed genuine.

"Oh, I'm just here to visit a relative. I've travelled a long damn way and I hope the visiting hours aren't over yet. My mom always said that travelling with hope will get you further than any car ever will. I'm a little early actually but who give a shit about time right?" he laughed. Chloe couldn't help but feel the irony of that question after all the shit she had been through with Max. If anyone should give a shit about time, it was her.

Chloe shrugged and continued smoking. Her mom and David would be here soon to pick her up and she was itching to get back to Max and…make up for lost time. Chloe took another look at the man and noted how young he really looked. He had a huge smile on his face and looked proud about something. Until Max came back to Arcadia Bay, Chloe never really had much to be proud off but now whenever she looked in a mirror, she saw the same look in her own face. Pride. She was actually proud of allot of shit and she was actually glad about it! Turns out emotions aren't as painful as she first thought.

"Where are your parents dude? You look like, seventeen or some shit" inquired Chloe as she stomped out the remnants of her cigarette.

"I'm adopted actually so who the fuck knows? My adopted parents would totally freak out if they knew I was here though but I had to come here. Been planning this for along damn time" he smiled, reminiscing.

"Must be some important relative. Knowing most of my family, I don't think I would travel walking distance to see them even if they were in hospital" replied Chloe. She didn't really hate her family…she just preferred to never see them again. She loved her mom and liked her step-father allot now but anyone else, she'd rather not be in the same room with.

"Well, family can be…tough I admit but at the end of the day, I wouldn't rather be anywhere else" he admitted, smiling again.

Before Chloe could respond, she heard a the honking of a horn and saw her mother and step-father pull up in David's car. Gathering her shit together, Chloe started for the car and didn't look back as she waved to the man and said, as she was walking,

"Later man, thanks again for the smokes!" yelled Chloe, before eagerly pushing the door to the car open, slamming it shut and driving away with her parents.

The man smiled as they left and checked his phone for a second and began to walk away but not before uttering,

"Congratulations on the wedding by the way" he said to himself as he wondered off towards the edge of the carpark.


	39. Chapter THIRTY-NINE: Wedding Planning!

**Chapter THIRTY-NINE: Wedding Planning!**

One important thing every human being should know…. Never get in the way of a former time travelling photographer who is planning her wedding!

Never!

Max Caulfield was freaking out both internally and externally! The car accident had set back the plans for the wedding and that meant they had to move the date and re-organise everything. On top of that, weddings cost cash that neither Max nor Chloe really had. Max was recently contacted by an online web designer who wanted to use some of her photos on his website and this had given Max a new level of confidence in herself and her photography. The web designer had been recommended to use Max's photos by a 'contact' close to the owners of the Chase Space and Max had a pretty damn good idea who the mysterious contact could be. Even with the money from the web designer and some cash that David and Joyce had kindly given them, Max and Chloe were strapped for cash and that depressed the hell out of both of them.

Chloe had only just left the hospital and her greeting was Max throwing her hoodie across their room in anger. This had surprised Chloe as Max wasn't the type to 'rage' allot but the wedding was extremely important to both of them and neither one of them wanted it to go badly.

"Don't worry Max, everything will be fine. Who gives a shit about money anyway, as long as I get to marry you and spend the rest of life with you then we can get married at a drive-thru KFC for all I care" Chloe had told Max but this did little to calm her down.

"I know Chloe but I just want this to be perfect. I want everyone to see how much I love you" explained Max as she paced up and down the room.

Chloe lifted herself off the bed and strolled over to her fiancé and put her arms lovingly around her waist. Romantic gestures used to be something Chloe only watched in crappy old movies and she would often cringe at the sight of it but the moment she met Max again after all those years apart, things changed. Now all she could think about was how to Max feel special and loved and she didn't care how cringy or dramatic it was! She would go to Hell and back for that young hipster who she loved so much.

"Well Super Max, I don't think there's a church big enough to show my love for you. Anyway, how about we hop into bed and I show you a little taste of how much I love you" winked Chloe. Max instantly chuckled and blushed. Whenever Max looked into the beautiful blue eyes of her fiancé, she was reminded of every single aspect of beauty in the world and in that single moment when their eyes met, all the negativity and just plain shit the world has produced was forgotten and replaced with thoughts of Chloe Price and her intense beauty and how warm she felt. It was a feeling she could never forget!

That wasn't the only unforgettable thing that happened that afternoon!

Max had already decided that the lovely Kate Marsh would officiate the wedding and Chloe was more than happy to go along with that as the punk absolutely adored Kate. When they had asked her, Kate practically burst into tears of happiness there and then. Even Victoria had gotten emotional. There was a bunch of forms and other stuff they had to fill out in order to make the whole thing official but it was worth it. Kate didn't even care what her church thought of it, she was more than happy to marry together two of her closest friends.

Upon returning from visiting Kate and Victoria, Max brought Chloe to the living where an important question had to be addressed…

"Where exactly are we going to have this wedding?" asked Max as she sat on the couch. It was a little silly that they had left such an important detail to virtually the last minute but they had both been so focussed on planning everything else that neither of them had 100% decided on a place yet, despite Chloe insisting that Firewalk play a remix of the wedding theme.

"Uhhh…good question Maxi-pad. You know I am super serious about this wedding but do you maybe mind if we like, don't do it in an actual church? I have nothing against churches but I want this to happen somewhere that means something to both of us. Something personal you know?" explained Chloe, taking Max's hands in her own.

Max took a second to think about it. On one hand, a classical wedding would be beautiful and Kate would definitely love that but Chloe was right, some place that was important to both of them would be completely amazing and pretty damn romantic!

"I like that idea, let's do it! What place though? I feel like anywhere I went with you is special" smiled Max.

"Even that gas station bathroom that smelled of fish when we were kids?" joked Chloe, talking about the time she, Max, Joyce and William went away camping when they were kids.

"You're such a dork. Seriously though, where should we have it?" asked Max. Both Max and Chloe had a long think about all the places they've been and how many of those places were actual good ones. The two of them sat there for what seemed like hours but in the end, it was Max Caulfield who came up with the perfect idea…

… "What about the place where it all started? The place we first spent the night after we broke into Blackwell and swam in the pool together. The place we had our first proper kiss and more importantly the place I realised I loved you Chloe Price. Why don't we have our wedding right here?" proposed Max.

At first the idea seemed bad to Chloe. This was the place she had last seen her father before he died and this was also the place she had spent many years depressed and alone but….why not have a seriously happy moment in the place that had been the home to so many bad ones and turn a place that had hurt Chloe so much into a place where she would have the happiest moment in her entire life. Chloe thought about it for another minute before smiling at Max and giving her a large and warm kiss and pulled her into a loving hug.

"I think I hella fucking love you Max. Some people would probably call us cheap or some shit and it would take a year to clear out the back yard but…I wouldn't have it anywhere else and with anyone else. I can't wait to marry you Max" proclaimed Chloe,

"I can't wait either Chloe"

 **Thanks for reading! I just wanted to say that I had planned for Max and Chloe to marry in the Price house for a while now and the reason is that I think it would be such a turning point in Chloe's character particularly as the house represents so much pain for her and she always felt distant and hateful of her home and I wanted that to change and I think she would too. I hope it makes sense to you all haha!**


	40. Chapter FORTY: One Week Left

**Chapter FORTY: One Week Left.**

 **So I wrote a pretty cool Mother's Day chapter that had a few short 'tales' of various characters and their relationships with their mothers but I realised that it's only Mother's Day here in the UK so I will save it for May time**

One week…

One mere week until Max Caulfield and Chloe Price finally married and solidified their love for eachother and… **everything was in chaos!**

The entire Price-Madsen family had been busting their asses trying to organise a wedding in their own home in a partially devastated town. David had nearly broken his shoulder trying to clean out the backyard, Chloe literally falling over with laughter didn't help much, and Joyce was busy trying to organise catering with Max and had the unfortunate task of trying to persuade any company to cater a wedding in a wrecked town on a budget. Eventually, Max had managed to convince Joyce to provide the food which was incredible as Joyce Price could out-cook an entire army of Gordon Ramsey's. Max and Chloe had a small list of guests anyway so that made it easier for Joyce and David to cook the majority of the food although, according to Chloe, David's cooking tasted like 'decomposing elephant crap' but she admitted that he had improved a hell of allot recently!

As for the theme of the wedding, Max insisted that there be some sort of pirate theme going on and Chloe definitely agreed. In the end, the two had decided to hold a Pirate/Punk/elegant wedding and that seemed like a dream come true for Max and Chloe. They both had remembered playing as pirates on their last day together all those years ago before Max moved to Seattle and Chloe got the soul crushing news of her father's death. For some reason, the young couple always loved being pirates and had done so ever since they first met so it seemed fitting that the happiest moment in their lives should have something to do with pirates.

The bridesmaids and so forth weren't really a concern for the young couple as, unsurprisingly, they had moved away from tradition slightly and decided to each have a few people that would stand with them on their most special of moments. Max was already wearing the ring Chloe had given her and she swore that she would never take it off but she had not yet given Chloe her ring and she would be saving that for the ceremony. Venessa Caulfield wanted to give Max a ring that was given to her by her own mother shortly before her death and Max had literally teared up when her mother handed it to her,

"Mom I…I can't take this. This is so special to you and…" Max had begun before her mother had taken Max's hand and kissed it gently,

"And Chloe is so special to you. Listen to me Maxine, I know I wasn't the politest about Chloe but I love that girl like she's my own and she soon will be in a sense so you take this ring and you give it to that girl and make her my daughter-in-law. I love you to Hell and back Max and you will make the perfect wife to Chloe" Venessa had said with tears streaming down her face. It was an exchange Max would not soon forget and she knew Chloe would treasure it.

Now all that really remained was to choose who would stand with Max and Chloe at the wedding and the dresses they would wear. Max's parents had bought her a lovely white and blue dress that looked as if it cost them a bomb but was lovely regardless and Chloe had an extremely beautiful looking blue dress that looked dazzling but Chloe did insist that she wanted to make a few adjustments to both of the dresses to fit the theme of the wedding. As for who would stand with them, Max had asked Warren and her old friends Kristen and Fernando to be with her although she knew it would be slightly difficult for Warren seeing as how he was in a wheelchair currently. Chloe had asked Steph Gingrich and her mother Joyce who was overjoyed with being asked. Although Chloe was extremely happy to have her mother by her side, she couldn't help but wonder what it would be like if her father was there or Rachel but she didn't let those thoughts get the better of her as she was determined to let this wedding be the happiest moment of her life and nothing, not even David's critical cooking, would stop that from happening.

After a hell of a long day of planning and preparation, Max and Chloe retired to their room and simply led together under the bed clothes with some quite music playing in the background. Chloe didn't know the song but Max had chosen it and therefore it was cool. Chloe looked at Max as she gently waved her head in time with the music and smiled. For so long she though she wasn't worth it, that no one would ever want to date or hang out with a loser like Chloe Price but it was different now, she was actually the lucky one! She was about to marry Max 'freaking' Caulfield who was the love of her damn life and the girl she always loved even when they were both young. Life had thrown an entire fucking tornado at them and yet it still didn't separate them and even the bitch that was time travel refused to hurt the relationship between the two girls.

"You know I love you right Max, like allot! I love you more than Firewalk and that's saying something I'll tell you. How the fuck did I end up so damn lucky?" asked Chloe who proceeded to snuggle up to Max.

"I don't think luck has anything to do with it Chloe otherwise I would have never ended up with someone as amazing as you. You know you've become allot mushier since you proposed and I kinda love it" chuckled Max.

"Shit, I used to hate mushy crap remember. Well, I used to say I hated it but I made an exception with you Mad Max and besides, we're going to be spending the rest of our lives together so I'll get used to some mushy stuff in our lives. Can you believe we're going to be married in only a week? Having any second thoughts?" asked Chloe. She only asked that as a joke but she had to admit she was kind of scared to hear the answer.

"Of course not. The only regret I have is that I won't be able to take the photos of our wedding. I know Victoria said she would get the top photographers she knows to take the phots as a wedding gift but still, I would have loved to do it myself" admitted Max.

"Don't worry about it Max, Victoria's family are a bunch of no hope snobs so it's about time their money was used for something good and besides, I wouldn't want you anywhere else other than by my side Max" claimed Chloe.

Soon both Chloe and Max will be married and both of them will be all the happier for it and so will everyone else around them as well as some people who are yet to even be born!


	41. Chapter FORTY-ONE: Matrimonium PART 1

**Chapter FORTY-ONE: Matrimonium PART 1 .**

As the golden sun rose and the birds started their personal symphonies, everyone knew the day had finally come!

Through thick and thin, through obstacle after obstacle, Max Caulfield and Chloe Price had survived it all and come out stronger than ever. So many times, they both had thought everything was over and the trials and tribulations they had endured had nearly broken them more than a few times but…the beauty of things that are broken is that they can just as easily be fixed and made even stronger!

Now, Max and Chloe were in separate rooms preparing for the day they had waited for…their wedding and boy were they nervous as shit!

Since a very early time that morning, the entire Price-Madsen family had been on overdrive attempting to set everything up in time. It was a nice and warm sunny day and that meant they could go ahead with their plans to hold the wedding in the backyard but that also meant finding room for all the chairs, buffet tables and the actual altar itself. Thankfully the guest list was small as it was limited to personal family and friends only which obviously meant less chairs and food were needed for the actual event. The funds weren't kind enough to support a fully-fledged wedding, reception and hen night all together, but Max and Chloe worked it all out so that the wedding itself would also double as the reception and it would all be held in the Price house. Victoria had offered to hold a small party that she and Kate had organised for after the wedding and that was more than good enough for the couple, although Chloe did complain about the lack of alcohol, but she knew Kate wouldn't be very comfortable around it after the Vortex Club incident. Either way everything was organised, even the honeymoon had been planned! Max and Chloe would hop into Chloe's truck in a few days' time and ride off into the sunset on a two-week road trip and whilst this wasn't the most glamorous of honeymoons, it was something Chloe and Max had wanted for a long time!

It had taken a fair while for the decorations to be put up and styled in the way Chloe had wanted it but the end result was more than worth it. The walls of the inside hallway and living room were covered in sparkling blue pirate flags and pictures and some old pirate themed trinkets that had been dug out of the attic, which Max was still slightly afraid of. As for the backyard, it had a similar pirate punk look but was made to look as if the entire wedding was taking place on a deserted island and a large 'X' was placed on the spot where Max and Chloe would actually get married and recite their vows. It had taken them both only a short while to come up with the words they would say to eachother on the day. Now it was all a matter of waiting until the guests would arrive and the wedding to begin.

Max Caulfield stood shaking as she looked in the mirror. She was currently located in Chloe's room and she was preparing her dress as the ceremony was only an hour away. The reflection in the mirror surprised Max as she was no longer staring at a petit shy hipster. The woman in the mirror reminded her of a strong and proud woman who was actually happy and content for the first time since way before the storm. The major thing that cought her eye was not the incredibly dazzling and beautiful dress she was now wearing but the tears that were currently making their way down her face.

Was she sad?

Was she angry?

No…she was terrified!

She was terrified of the future, terrified of what could happen and terrified that she could screw it up. This was the most important moment of her life and she was marrying the most important person in her life and that terrified the fuck out of her more than any storm could ever do. Max wanted nothing more than to have a long and meaningful life with Chloe Price but she was so scared it could end and that would break her heart and it would take more than superglue and time travel to fix. Max slowly sunk onto the bed and wept silently with her hands covering her face.

Suddenly there was a knock on the window by the desk and Max was startled for a second. She quickly wiped the tears from her face and glanced over to the window but saw nothing. Nothing but a small white envelope that had been stuck on the outside of the window. Shaking away the confusion for a second, she edged her way towards the window and she took care to open the window and retrieve the small envelope. Before closing the window, Max glanced around the outside to see if she could see anyone but the only people she could see were some workers in the distance. Shaking her head in confusion she took the envelope, that was marked 'For Max' on the front of it and opened it. The letter inside appeared to be hand written by someone with slightly scruffy handwriting but it still looked smart enough to read. Max sat back on the bead and began to read the strange letter;

 _ **Dear Max,**_

 _ **I know this must seem super weird and very strange but right now I would ask you to put that to the back of your mind. As Jayelle Cochran said '**_ _ **Being weird adds spice to life. Having weird friends just deepens the flavour'. Anyway just bear with me here. I know that right now you are feeling scared and frightened about the future and believe me when I say, I know the feeling! I just wanted to say that you don't need to worry, not even slightly! Just keep looking forward to that beautiful future with Chloe and never ever forget that you are a strong person who she loves so very much and trust me when I say, you are going to have a great life together! So I better go now, things to do and places to be but just remember…it's going to be okay.**_

 _ **P.S. Get room 5!**_

 _ **W.P-C.**_

Despite being hugely confused, Max couldn't help but smile. She knew she was silly for worrying and this weird letter made allot of sense. She studied the letter again but still remained confused. She didn't know anyone with the initials 'W.P-C' and the last line didn't make sense at all. Max decided to keep the letter and stored it away in a drawer for safe keeping. Wherever it came from, it was still a nice letter. Max then proceeded to stand up and clear her face a little. She was ready! Ready to marry the love of her life and ready to finally be completely happy!

Chloe Price smiled as she gazed upon the backyard. She remembered the days when she and Max used to climb on the swing set and search for buried treasure, which normally ended up being cool looking stones and long-ass worms. The memory of the time capsule the two had found reached her mind. It was the last proper day she spent with Max before she left for Seattle and Chloe knew before Max even told her, so she dedicated that last day to running around and pretending to be kids again! It had been such an awesome time before Joyce came home and told Chloe that…her father had been in an accident. That moment had broken Chloe all those years ago, so much so that she forgot any hope of being happy and content and replaced it with anger and hate. Fate had dealt her a shitty hand and she just had to get on with it! Now, she stood in that very same spot and was happy. Very extremely fucking happy! So, fate could go fuck itself!

The wedding was now only an hour away and Chloe felt very nervous. Chloe wasn't exactly known for her public appearances and she didn't really like standing in front of a large amount of people, just ask her old drama teacher, but that wasn't the only thing that scared the living daylights out of her. The thought of hurting Max somehow had won the race of worries and it was now right at the front of Chloe's mind. Maxine Caulfield was the single most important person in her life and the last thing she wanted was to hurt her, she would rather die! She closed her eyes for a second and made a promise. A promise to herself, to Max, to her father, to Rachel and to whoever else that happened to be listening; _No matter what happens or how shitty things may seem to be, I will never hurt Max and will make her the happiest wife in this whole fucking world!_ The slamming of a car door took her out of her trance and she stood up and mentally prepared herself. The guests had arrived!

 **Sorry to end it there, the second part will be out this Saturday to make up for my constant lateness! I also wanted to say that this is the first of two parts that will sort of end the main story of this fanfic but I have fell in love with this story and your support has been so incredible, so I will be posting chapters regularly for things like Easter, Mother's day, Characters' birthdays etc. as well as a few now and then for smaller stories such as Max and Chloe's honeymoon and other things like that. Thanks so much again and have a great day everyone!**


	42. Chapter FORTY-TWO: Matrimonium PART 2

**Chapter FORTY-TWO: Matrimonium PART 2**

Victoria and Kate were the first to arrive and boy did they look incredible! Victoria, no surprise, had come dressed like a princess with a midnight purple dress that sparkled ever so slightly in the light. Surprisingly however, she wasn't wearing a great deal of makeup and Chloe noted to herself that she looked a hell of allot less pretentious this way. Kate wore a white and gold dress that made her look somewhat like an angel who had just come down from Heaven and bore a huge and warm smile as if she had just gotten her wings for the first time.

"Congratulations Chloe! I am so happy for you and Max. Also thank you so much for allowing me to be the one to officiate you guys, I've been looking forward to this!" beamed Kate who then gave Chloe a tight hug. It was amazing how far Kate had come in the past few months and her confidence was at an all time high. Chloe and Max figured it may have had something to do with the reformed bully she was currently dating. Nether Max or Chloe really referred to Victoria as a 'bully' anymore as they both had to admit she had changed dramatically, although Chloe still delighted in mocking her whenever she could.

"Thanks Kate, you were our first choice so thanks for doing it. Who'd have thought that I of all people would get hitched huh? Kinda terrified to be honest" admitted Chloe. Kate put a hand on Chloe's shoulders and her smile grew even more. If it grew any wider, it would have probably gone of the sides of her face!

"Don't be silly Chloe, you are stronger and braver than you think. You're going to make Max so happy" proclaimed Kate. Chloe was about to reply when Joyce popped her head around the corner and bellowed to Kate that it was time to get ready. Joyce Price had taken it upon herself to teach Kate everything that she needed to know to perform the ceremony correctly. Without another word, Kate made her way to Joyce without hesitation.

"She's been really nervous about this…" began Victoria,  
"…I've never seen her so happy. Thanks for doing that for her, you have no idea how much it raised her confidence. I owe you one Price" continued Victoria, half smiling.

Chloe smiled in return. It would have been the understatement of the century to say that Chloe and Victoria didn't get along to well. In recent months however, that had all changed. When Kate and Victoria had started dating all that time ago, something had changed in the two women. Kate's faith had never been stronger as not only did she see the person who had tormented her change into a kind and considerate person, but she was also in love and dating that very same person! It had renewed her tested faith and made her a much happier person. As for Victoria, it was immediately obvious that she had given up trying to overcompensate all the time and had instead focussed on her photography and her brand-new relationship. Victoria Chase had witnessed the girl she had nearly driven to suicide change into a strong and independent person and that had given the former queen bitch of Blackwell Academy a new perspective of life and Chloe was actually kind of a little bit…proud of her!

"You don't owe me anything Victoria, just you keep on making that girl happy" said Chloe, who was genuinely smiling at the girl she once called 'a human sewer'. Victoria nodded and began to go and find Kate before turning to Chloe and saying,

"Those photographers will get here in like five minutes. I told them to take a look at Max's work and I think they might have a proposition for her" with that, she strolled off.

Chloe simply smiled, looking forward to the future!

After Kate and Victoria, the floodgates opened and all the guests pilled in minutes later. Steph and Mikey arrived and gave in their gifts, Chloe guessed it was some cool geeky stuff, and Warren and Brooke arrived shortly after. After about half an hour, all the guests had arrived and were mingling in the living room. Warren got along well with Steph and Mikey, no surprise there, and Chloe had to hold back laughter when she saw Brooke get slightly jealous of Steph. Unless Warren was a girl secretly then she didn't really have anything to worry about. It also turns out that Steph got some job in a theatre not too far outside Arcadia Bay. That made Chloe smile.

Meanwhile, Max had been talking with Kate and discovered that she had been coming with some amazing new ideas for a new children's book and she was thinking about ways to get it published when it was done. This had made Max hugely happy and was glad to hear it. Kristen and Fernando had also made it to the wedding and Max spent a long time catching up with her old friends. Memories of binge watching shows and spewing out bad jokes flooded Max's brain and the three had many laughs reminiscing. Max was still nervous about everything, but she was just too insanely happy to care about being scared, she was marrying Chloe Price and that was about to make her happier than she could have ever hoped!

After the final guest arrived…it was finally time!

The sun was shining and the birds were singing symphonies as everyone took their seats and waited for the ceremony to begin. Kate stood at the altar, bible in hand. Everything had been leading to this moment, every single event in the lives of Chloe Price and Max Caulfield both good and bad had been leading to this very spot and this exact time. Max had spent so long worrying about time and its implications but right now, time seemed to be on her side for once. Her mind drifted back to that week in October, when she had been scared for her life and just about everyone else's in Arcadia Bay. She was without hope or without reward but now, she was filled with hope and she was receiving her reward.

As the tune to 'Here comes the bride' began, all eyes turned to the two women who were making their way down the aisle. No one had cared when Max and Chloe decided to throw tradition out the window yet again as they both decided that they would walk down the aisle together, arm in arm. Max thought this up as a way to show that they would never part not for anything or anyone. As Joyce and David looked on in tears and Ryan and Venessa resisted the urge to openly cry with joy, Max and Chloe reached the altar. A journey that had started so long ago was about to end and another was about to begin.

As Kate explained the legalities and so forth, all the two could do was stare into eachothers eyes. They both knew that they would surely argue and maybe have a few bad nights, but they didn't care about that, not one bit.

When it was finally time for Max and Chloe to say their vows, both of them were nervous. Speaking in public was never something they were very good at and right know they had to say something that would prove their love for eachother. Fortunatly, they had both found it easy to write down the reasons why they loved eachother. Max was the one to go first;

"Some people don't really remember much of their early childhood and that's the same with me but there is one thing I constantly remember. You, Chloe Price. Out of the hundreds and thousands of things I did when I was a kid, you are the one thing that I remember, that I will always remember. You made me feel like I was the luckiest person alive. We spent nearly every day together and when we did I felt something, something so strong and was always there and I soon realised it was love. I love you Chloe, now and forever and not one second goes by without me thinking of you. As a photographer, I try my hardest to capture beauty in every shot but I now realise I could never really do that. Not fully. As the true beauty is right here standing in front of me. No matter where I go I'll never find a better prize. We've been through allot and I got through all those hard times because I knew my end goal was you Chloe. You're my hero Chloe Price and your about to be my wife, as long as this super cheesy speech didn't scare you off. One last thing, I decided what our name will be…Price-Caulfield! Because I'll always put you before me"

There wasn't a dry eye to be seen. Ryan and Venessa had now given up all hope of not crying out loud and were now in floods of tears holding eachother. They were so proud. Chloe herself now had tears in her eyes. Every second of that speech had made her so happy and so full of love that she didn't care if it was cheesy or mushy. Max had said it and she would always remember it. Now it was Chloe's turn;

"You know I've never been any good at this right? The words I would normally say would probably be a little too graphic for this kind of thing, but you know what? I'm going to make an exception this time because when it comes to you Max Caulfield, I'm willing to leave everything I was behind and be the person you want me to be. You're my superhero Max and you always have been. Every time I was in tears or angry at the world, I would think of you and that beautiful smile of yours and I would be fine again. I used to find the whole love thing to be stupid and I didn't think it was real but then I realised I loved you and it all changed. I thought I wasn't worth anything and I wouldn't amount to anything but then you came back to me and I know I must've been wrong as how else would I deserve someone like you. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me Max and you're the reason why I've hung on for this long and why I kept fighting. So again, I love you Max and I always will and I know I'll always be happy in the future because in another sixty years, you'll still be Max Price-Caulfield and I'll be there every step of the way!"

Now it was Max's turn to tear up. This had been so perfect, every single second of it. Both David and Joyce were in tears now, so proud of Chloe. A small butterfly landed on top of the altar as Kate began to say those famous words;

"Max Caulfield, do you take Chloe Price to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

Max smiled through the tears and said the best two words of her entire life;

" **I do"**

"And Chloe Price, do you take Max Caulfield to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

Chloe looked directly into Max's eyes;

" **I do"**

The words had been spoken, there was only one last thing to say;

"I now pronounce you spouses for life and in life, you may kiss"

Max and Chloe leaned in and made the last declaration they needed to solidify their marriage and just like that, they were married! After so many years apart and many bad adventures, it had all meant nothing as whatever forces that had tried to keep them apart had failed. Max and Chloe Price-Caulfield were together. It was about time!

Ever guest now stood and began to cheery the couple as they smiled and waved to everyone. Except Warren of course. He was still smiling and cheering though.

It may have taken years, time travel and mega storms but Max and Chloe had made it! Their journey of hardship had finally come to an end and they were both happier than they had ever been. As they walked back down the aisle together, a thought occurred to them both. No matter how hard things could and would get, they had eachother and that was enough for them. More than enough!

As he watched it all take place, he could not wipe the smile of his face. He had travelled so far to see this, and it was more than worth it. Their future was bright and he knew it. He also knew Max had gotten his note, he made sure of that and he was told about it of course so it must have happened. He pulled small crinkled photo and gazed upon it for a second. That photo was his inspiration for all of this. That one small photo. A small chuckle crept out of his mouth as he realised it hadn't technically been taken yet, not really anyway. He turned to leave not before looking back one last and gave a small salute to the two women who had made his life worth living. Every single second.

 **Well there we go! It's all been leading to this! Thanks so much for everything, it has all been overwhelming. I've also decided that I'm not going to end this FanFic just yet but there will be a break. I've had inspiration for a new storyline and I can't wait to plan it and write it! Thanks so much once again and have a great weekend everyone!**

 **Also I apologise if I got aspects of the wedding wrong, I live in the UK and it's a little different over here for certain things so I sort of combined the two.**


	43. A Mother's Love (Mother's Day Special)

**A Mother's Love…**

 **Pretty soon I will finally start posting brand new chapters to this FanFic but for now, I wrote this special Mother's Day chapter a few months ago when it was Mother's Day here in the UK. Happy Mother's Day everyone and have a great day!**

 **ONE: The day I shall never get back…**

Three hundred and seventy-two days. That's how long it's been since she'd last used. Ever day it was a struggle, a battle raging within her with all the fury of a pissed demon! Endless sleepless nights, boiling hot sweat fevers, long and furious headaches and that horrible unendurable feeling of loneliness and anxiety had become regular feelings to her over the past year…but…

It had all been worth it.

Every single second of it!

So she could see her **Rachel** …

That truly beautiful and incredible young woman was HER daughter. She wasn't proud of anything she had done in her life except one thing; giving birth to Rachel Amber. Sera had never believed her own mother when she had told her that 'you never know what happiness is until you give birth to a wonderful child'. She thought her mother was crazy and didn't really see the point in kids when she was younger however, the day she gave birth to Rachel had changed all that, made her see what her mother saw and feel what she had felt. Sera Gearhardt had never been so happy in her entire life. Marrying James Amber had come close of course, but it didn't compare to seeing the small beautiful baby girl lying in her arms, gently sliding around. Sera remembered the day Rachel opened her eyes for the first time, she thought about it whenever she was having one of her down days. The way those tiny little eyes slowly opened and the gentle flick of her pupils had brought Sera to tears and the look on the young Rachel's face had been one of pure determination as if to say 'look out world, I'm here and I'm going to make my mark!'. It was the best day of her life.

Then it all went to shit.

Then came the drugs.

Sera had always been a wild one, not even James knew the extent when they first met. She always liked to live on the wild side of life but she'd never, for one single second believed that she herself would turn just as wild. Soon, like a vengeful spirit, it had consumed her. Before she knew it, everything had been taken from her. Her home, her husband and her precious Rachel. Everything was gone and it was all her fault. She had tried to convince herself that she was the victim, that it had taken hold of her when she was at her most vulnerable but…she knew the truth. Sera wanted it, more than anything and it had cost her the life she never knew she wanted.

James had a new family now and a new job but Sera didn't care. She had loved James so much, he was her entire world but he had run away with her daughter and that sometimes boiled inside of her, threatening to reach a critical level. She couldn't blame him obviously, not one bit! She was an addict and a danger to Rachel so he did do the right thing, even if it hurt her so much. Regardless, she didn't hate him. Not one bit. The one she truly hated was herself. Not just for the drugs but for accepting money from James to stay away from his family. From Rachel. That burned harder than the fires of Hell itself, to think she had chosen money over her own daughter.

 **No more…**

Sera wouldn't do it, not again. She couldn't! She had spent over a year trying to get clean, going through every agonising step she could just so she could see her Rachel one more time. Sera knew she could never make up for the past or be a good mother, she was long past that but the least she could do is see her again. The best part of her life. Sera knew the plan, meet up with James and tell him she wanted to see Rachel again. She had to. It is the only thing that matters to her now. Sera could never get back the days she missed with Rachel and that burnt so much but she made a promise to herself and to Rachel.

 **No more sadness and no more grief!** **No more whining and no more selfishness. The only thing that matters is Rachel and no matter how much it hurts, she will do what's best for her daughter! For Rachel Amber…**

 **TWO: Pride and Punks…**

3:27 am. That was the time Chloe Price finally came home. It was the fourth night in a row she had stayed out until the early hours and yet…Joyce Price still couldn't bring herself to go to bed until her daughter was back home. Safe…yet far from being sound. Joyce would stay awake, constantly worrying and even crying to herself until she heard the unmistakable sound of Chloe's beaten up truck arriving in the dead of night, it's driver either drunk, high or commonly both. David would often stay up with her but only so he could march down the stairs and start an argument, which almost always lasted hours, and remind her wayward daughter how much she worried Joyce all the time. Joyce knew his heart was in the right place and he cared deeply for her and Chloe but sometimes he could be so damned stubborn.

It was always the same. Chloe would leave in the afternoon with not so much as a goodbye and stay out doing Lord-knows-what with Lord-knows-who and then come back in the early hours of the next morning drunk as a skunk. Whenever Joyce would confront her about it, it results in a shouting match louder than a war drum. Chloe was just so unpredictable. However, despite her flaws and her intense temper…Joyce was still proud of Chloe Price and that wold never change. **Never!** It's said that a mother's love is stronger than any other emotion and that was certainly true with Joyce! There were days when her daughter would call her names in rage and go redder than a tomato with anger but…it was still her daughter. Behind all the anger and aggression, there was the sweet and sassy young woman who once buried time capsules in the back garden and played pirates until nearly passing out with exhaustion.

Chloe always presented herself as a hard-punk type woman who would slice your fingers off if they ever went near something that belonged to her but Joyce knew that wasn't who she really was. It wasn't but a week ago that Joyce was walking to work and spotted Chloe yelling at a group of jocks who were hassling a homeless man. Of course, they all backed off and walked away once they saw the fury of Chloe Price. Joyce remembered feeling pride as she saw her daughter offer the man a cigarette, handed over a few dollars and even talk with the man before wondering off. That was the woman she was always telling everyone was 'a good girl' and 'deserved a chance'. It was hard sometimes, Chloe would get angry and provoke people and she would insist on cussing all the time and abusing drugs and partying. It wasn't always out of fun, Joyce knew, sometimes it was the only way she could even begin to hold in the pain of her father's death.

William Price was a great man, one of the most genuine, loving and kind people Joyce had ever met and he was taken so soon and so suddenly away from them all. The funeral had been on the very same day that Chloe's best friend Maxine Caulfield had left for Seattle. It had broken Chloe, torn every emotion to bits and it was all replaced with fear, anger and sadness. All leading to the Chloe everyone knew today.

Joyce led there in her bed, listening as the muffled footsteps continued their journey up the stairs. However, before heading into Chloe's room, they stopped just outside Joyce's bedroom door. She heard a noise before the footsteps began walking away again and finally into Chloe's room. Joyce silently got out of bed, being careful not to wake David, and wondered over to the door and silently opened it. To Joyce's surprise there wasn't a note telling her that Chloe was sorry for coming home late but there was a small box with a note on top. Joyce picked up the box and walked back inside her room and turned on the small lamp on the desk in order to get a better look at the mysterious package. The note on top instantly made Joyce smile and feel so incredibly warm inside…

 _Mom,  
Happy Mother's Day. You know I love you so…I got you this. Hope you like it._

 _P.S My trucks is kinda totalled. Get step-douche to look at it for me, would you?_

 _Chloe._

Joyce couldn't help but smile and tear up. Chloe never really was one for words and Joyce knew this was her way of expressing herself. She just wished it was easy for Chloe to do, so she didn't have to hide them all the time.

Inside the box was a necklace. At first glance it looked like a simple chain that was slightly rusty but Joyce knew exactly what it was. Many years ago, when Chloe was eight or nine, she had sat down with Joyce and they had made custom jewellery using various objects they were going to throw out. This necklace had been one of the two things Chloe had loved and given to her mother. Joyce had thought it had gone missing years ago but apparently that wasn't the case. Joyce's smile grew wider as she realised Chloe must have kept it close to her, after all these years. This gift had only proven what Joyce knew in her heart, the old Chloe was still there somewhere and that no matter what anyone else says, Chloe Price is still a good person and a kind one at that! All she needed was something to show her she still mattered, someone other than Joyce to tell her she was special and that they cared about her.

If only Max was here…

 **THREE: During the storm…**

It all happened so fast. Turning on the TV, the 'breaking news' screen, the news man warning the general public about a freak storm raging through the seaside town of Arcadia Bay, Oregon, the expected death toll. It was all a blur to Venessa Caulfield as in that one moment, a thousand emotions surged through her mind so fast it took a few seconds for her to fully realise the gravity of the situation. Arcadia Bay had been hit by an unexpected and unnatural storm and a tornado was currently blitzing through the very same town that her only daughter, Maxine Caulfield, was attending school. Out of all the emotions she felt as she gazed upon the now blurry screen, fear stood sentient like a God surveying his followers. The next thing she knew, her husband Ryan had leapt up from the couch and sprinted over to his phone on the kitchen table and began frantically calling Max. When the realisation did hit, and it hit with the same power as mega-tone nuclear bomb, Venessa started to panic. She too shot up from the couch and began searching for her phone. Books and fruit bowls were tossed and cupboard doors were smashed as Venessa frantically searched for the small two-year old smartphone. In a matter of seconds, the once calm and relaxing atmosphere in the three-bedroomed Seattle house had transformed into a crazy, panic induced madhouse.

Finally, Venessa managed to track down her phone. With tears threatening to flood down her face, she dialled Max's number. The next few seconds felt like an eternity as the dialling town sang its song. With every second that went by and no one was answering, the more panicked Venessa was becoming. The stern tone of the newscaster was still within hearing range and Venessa was able to hear words such as 'destroyed' and 'levelled' and 'left baron'. Suddenly all hope was restored as Venessa heard the sweet and warm sound of her daughter's voice on the other end of the phone. However, that hope was soon ripped away as Venessa realised it had gone to voicemail. She dropped her phone and raised her hand to her mouth in a single, swift motion.

 _This can't be happening…_

 _No way is this happening…_

 _She's fine…she has to be!_

Suddenly Ryan ran in and announced that there was no reply for him either. In any other situation, Ryan Caulfield was always the one to stay calm and collected in times of stress and would always try his best to rally others to do the same but…not this time. Venessa could hear the tremble in his voice, that shaky edge you can only hear in someone when something so fundamentally shocking and upsetting has happened. Venessa quickly grabbed her husband and pulled the big man into a tight embrace. The fear and hopelessness they both felt during that hug was heart-breaking and they both let the tears finally flood down their faces as they watched in horror as images of the tornado began to flood the TV screen.

It could've been hours or maybe even days that passed as Venessa pulled on every last drop of hope that she could muster just to stay focussed. She had heard news that they were beginning to find survivors and setting up rescue camps just outside the town. Everyone on their street were beginning to mass in the street, bound together with collective worry. Many of them had never been to Arcadia Bay in their life but everyone knew the fully extent of the horror unfolding many miles away. Ryan had mobilised some of the other parents in the neighbourhood and they were even talking about forming a personal rescue team. Venessa had spent most of her time constantly trying Max over and over and over again. Her phone had even run out of battery once or twice. Throughout all the chaos, Venessa made sure to never go too far away from the house in case Max called the house-phone or there were any updates on the news. She practically threatened the pizza delivery guy with death when he called to say the pizza was going to be late. They had ordered food before they learned about the storm and neither Venessa nor Ryan were hungry.

After hours of waiting and calling and panicking, Venessa and Ryan returned to their house. Both of them were exhausted both mentally and physically but neither of them could bring themselves to go to sleep. They simply stood and hugged, trying to get through what had to have been one of the worst experiences of their lives. Venessa sank into Ryan's arms. Max had just barely reached eighteen and it felt like yesterday when she held little baby Maxine in her arms for the first time. It had been the most beautiful of evenings with every star seemingly shinning brighter than ever before. Ryan had gone to get a coffee when the actual birth started but when he heard from the nurse what was happening, he sprinted to the room Venessa was in, nearly nocking down a poor old lady. When Max finally joined the world, everything was silent until the sound of her cries echoed through the hospital halls. Apparently, it woke up some patients on the floor below. Venessa knew from that moment on that she would always protect her little girl through anything and would never give up on her. Now…everything seemed lost. The fact that she didn't know anything was what pained her the most! She didn't know if Max was dead or alive or injured or anything. Just nothing.

Then came the phone call.

The very sound of her phone ringing sent her mind into overdrive and she found her hand picking up the phone and answering it without even thinking. She felt Ryan tense up as he tried to listen into whoever it was on the other end of the phone. Venessa didn't expect to hear the warm tone of Joyce Price on the other end. It sounded so nice to hear a friendly voice, even if she hadn't heard it in some time. It didn't matter though. Only one thing mattered. Venessa listened and held Ryan's hand tightly until she heard the best three words in her entire existence…

 **Max is safe**

 **Thanks so much for reading this, I know it's a little odd. I had SO much fun writing it though and I hope it wasn't boring or anything. I had two other short stories focussing on Kate and Victoria's parent's but I wasn't satisfied with them on re-reading so I will redo them and upload them another time. I can't say when I will start the next section of this FanFic but I am having a blast planning it. Thanks so much again!**

 **NEXT TIME: Life is Stranger:** _ **The Road Trip**_ **(Chapter One)**


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